


Written in the Stars

by RhydianKnight



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-30
Updated: 2016-09-21
Packaged: 2018-07-28 06:06:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 42,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7627984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RhydianKnight/pseuds/RhydianKnight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After sixteen years of being away, Clarke returns back to Arkadia. Little does she know that her entire life is about to change as secrets will be revealed and she will never be the same. And why cant she stay away from a certain green eyed brunette?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Hello again! So, this is Written in the Stars version 2.0! I took down the old one shortly after posting the 7th chapter back in June and decided to rewrite this and go off in another direction. If you read the old version, please don’t skip chapters because I promise you will be thoroughly confused as I’m adding new things and changing others. Some of it will look very familiar but there will be changes! Enjoy! Welcome TGF once again as she is going to be my ROCKSTAR Beta again! ~RK  
> *****  
> B/N: Hello! It is still I, TGF, beta-ing this story. RK just loves me enough to let me get first dibs! ~TGF

Written in the Stars  
The passenger’s side window slowly rolled down, exposing an arm as it appeared in the open space followed by a blonde head. The SkullCandy headphones upon her head did very little to help keep the long blonde locks tame as they whipped back and forth in the wind. She rested her chin upon her arm, her cerulean eyes surveying the area as the loaded car sped down the highway, taking in all the scenery and its vibrant colors that captivated her attention.  
For the past year she’d been accustomed to the drab city life, with its concrete and steel buildings, overpopulated streets, and noise that wasn’t restricted to working hours. Replacing such a grey history with all these colors was a welcomed change and she hoped that upon their arrival to grab her sketch pad and put these new sights to paper. Yes, the wild life, foliage, and what she’d hoped to be the breathtaking view of a harbor would be a wonderful change to the pages of city life sketches she had drawn.  
She could feel the excitement bubble within her as they passed a sign indicating they were close to their final destination. They’d been in the car for two days since packing up their last home and she was more than ready to be done with the travelling part of the move. She’d grown accustomed to the process of relocating after having done so for as long as she could remember, so she hoped this time was the last time for a while.  
Turning her head, she glanced over to the driver’s seat where her mother was sitting casually as she moved the steering wheel with one hand, her other resting on the drink balanced on her knee. Behind the sunglasses upon her face, she knew were tired eyes. The last month had been stressful enough with the final arrangements after her father’s death, and it didn’t help that their already strained mother/daughter relationship was made worse after she blamed her mother for it.  
Okay, maybe not the actual killing him, but she was the main reason he kept his cancer a secret and didn’t tell them until he was too sick to get out of bed and after a couple days of his condition as well as much pleading from her mother to be seen by a doctor, did he tell them what was going on.  
A frown appeared upon her face as she remembered. Her heart constricted slightly and she felt tears spring forth. Closing her eyes, she swallowed the lump in her throat and shoved the morose feelings back into the locked box they’d escaped from within her. She wasn’t going to go there. She couldn’t when there was so much more to focus on at the moment.  
Feeling a shove to her arm, she opened her eyes and pulled the headphone from her ear to hear what her mother was saying, “Yeah?”  
“I asked if you were hungry?” Her mother asked before giving her a knowing look.  
“Yes!” She shifted in her seat and looked back out the front windshield, “How much longer?”  
“About ten minutes.”  
“That’s good, because I’m pretty sure my stomach is about to turn to cannibalism if I don’t feed it soon.” Humor, always a distraction from the pain. Hearing the soft chuckle beside her she added, “I’m serious, Mom! It’s eyeing my kidney’s like they’re candied yams.”  
“I’m positive that’s impossible, Clarke.”  
“You don’t know that.”  
“Who’s the doctor again?” Abby raised her eyebrow and then smirked, “Besides, if your stomach can’t wait, you can survive with one kidney.”  
“You don’t have to remind me who the doctor is, I’m very well aware.” Clarke sassed as she looked out the front windshield. Before her mother could open her mouth to rebuttal, she jumped excitedly at the sight before her, “Is that it?”  
Abby nodded as they made their way down the windy road towards the harbor, “Welcome back to Arkadia.”  
***  
"Well, well, well! Look who decided to grace us with her presence?"  
Clarke looked up from her menu at the sound of the male voice beside her and noticed the dark haired man smiling at her mother, who sat across from her.  
"Hello, Marcus." Abby smiled standing and giving him a hug. "It's been a long time."  
"It has." The man, Marcus, replied smiling before a solemn look fell across his face. "I'm so sorry to hear about Jake. He was a good man."  
Clarke looked back to her menu at the mention of her father's name, taking in a deep breath to steady her rapidly beating heart. She felt a reassuring hand on her shoulder and knew it was her mother trying to comfort her. Looking up, she saw the concerned look upon the older blonde's face and she nodded, silently conveying she would be ok.  
"We're getting by." Abby said after a light squeeze to her daughter’s shoulder.  
"If there is anything I can do to help, don't hesitate to ask." Marcus responded.  
"Of course."  
"So, this must be Clarke." Upon hearing her name from his lips, the younger of the two looked up and smiled politely at him. "I haven't seen you since you were running around in diapers."  
"I've definitely come a long way from those." Clarke smirked, "Last I checked my underwear drawer holds thongs instead of diapers."  
"Clarke!" Abby admonished cuffing her daughter upside the head.  
A snort behind the younger blonde caused her to turn around and she saw a boy who appeared to be her age trying to contain a smile as he stirred the contents of the cup before him. Brown eyes met Clarke's blue and the boy nodded before picking up his cell phone. Turning once more to her own table, Clarke ignored the two adults now talking a few steps away and perused the menu once more.  
"Allergies?"  
"Excuse me?" Clarke looked up to see a waitress standing beside her table holding a notepad. The name tag on her shirt read 'Maya'.  
"Do you have any allergies?" The dark haired pale skinned girl asked.  
"Uhm, no."  
"Then I suggest the Chefs Special." Maya pointed to the spot on the menu with the pen in her hand where the Special was laid out. "Jasper is an amazing cook and it's delicious."  
"You're a little bit biased there, Vie." The voice behind Clarke called out, causing the blonde to turn and see that the boy was looking at the waitress.  
"Shut it, Collins." Maya responded rolling her eyes. "His food is amazing and you know it."  
"It's ok." The boy shrugged before looking to Clarke, "Jasper is her boyfriend, so she's going to gush about his food no matter what you order."  
Clarke looked between him and the waitress and couldn't help but to chuckle at the look Maya was throwing at the boy behind her. "I'll take the Chef's Special."  
"Make that two." Abby said returning to her seat, "Sorry about that."  
"Two Chef's Specials coming up!" Maya smiled triumphantly, sticking her tongue out at the boy behind Clarke and walking away to put in their order.  
Clarke turned to her mother and shrugged at the questioning look she was given. She pulled out her phone and opened Facebook to browse her Newsfeed while they waited. That in itself wouldn't be for very long as within ten minutes two plates were being slid in front of the two blondes, loaded with what Clarke had to admit smelled like deliciousness.  
"Can I get you ladies anything else?" Maya asked smiling at Clarke's reaction. At the shake of their heads, she added, "Enjoy your meal." Before retreating to another table on the other side of the restaurant.  
Stomach rumbling, Clarke dug into her plate and had to hold back the soft moan threatening to escape her lips as she chewed. Her eyes shut in bliss at the taste of real food going into her stomach and not the junk she'd been munching on for the past couple of hours.  
Hearing the chuckle in front of her, her eyes popped open to see her mother smiling brightly at her and shaking her head. "What?"  
"It always amazed me how much you turned out to be just like him." A fork slid into her mother's mouth stopping any further comment that would've followed.  
"Yeah." Clarke looked down, "Makes it easier sometimes."  
"This was good for us." Abby took her daughters hand within her own. "You'll see."  
"Yeah." The younger blonde repeated sighing. She kept her hand where it was and allowed the tiny comfort being offered to her for a moment longer before slowly pulling it away to resume eating her meal.  
***  
The house was everything Clarke imagined and remembered from the pictures she'd seen of herself when she was a baby. Her parents had said they couldn't bring themselves to sell it, and so it was their home once more now that they were back in Arkadia. Her mother and her rushed around, opening windows to air out the musty heavy smell and to bring light to the inside that had been sealed up for almost sixteen years.  
Furniture was uncovered, appearing in the same condition they'd left it, the covers having done their jobs perfectly. The moving van was due the following day, but the car was loaded with what belongings they would need immediately and after it was taken care of and unloaded, Clarke retreated to her room with the last of her boxes.  
"Clarke! Remember to put your things together for your first day!" Her mother yelled up the stairs after her. “I know how you like to wait until last minute!”  
"School doesn't start for another couple of days, Mom!" Clarke yelled back, rolling her eyes.  
It was true. School started that following Monday, which gave her the weekend to unload her life once it arrived and get everything in order in her room the way she wanted it. Dropping the box in her hands by her closet, she grabbed the sketchbook beside the air mattress bundle she'd yet to blow up, and took a seat on the dusty window sill.  
Flipping it open to a clean page, she began putting the images to paper she'd had ingrained in her head. Within no time the outline of the view of the harbor was clearly distinguishable. Pausing for a moment, biting the end of her pencil eraser, movement from outside the window caught her eye and she looked over to see a darker girl in the house next door moving around what appeared to be her room.  
The girl was oblivious to her neighbor watching her as she danced about her room moving her hips and arms in time to the beat only heard by her. Occasionally, clothes were picked up and thrown out of sight, an assumption that she was cleaning was probably accurate as she moved about the room.  
Clarke returned her attention to her sketchbook and continued to draw. People always fascinated her, everyone had their own unique personalities that she could tell by basic instinct what kind of person they were on the inside. Deciding she was finished for the moment as her thoughts began to wonder, she put her sketchbook down and looked outside only to find the neighbor girl she’d seen dancing was leaning out of her window looking at her curiously.  
The girl mimed for Clarke to do the same and the blonde moved to unlatch the locks and lift the wooden frame. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen anyone in that house.”  
“So?” Clarke replied leaning back against the wall behind her for support.  
“I didn’t know the Griffin’s sold it.” The girl responded tilting her head to the side, “I’m Raven. Raven Reyes.”  
“Clarke.” Clarke replied. “Clarke Griffin.”  
“Griffin?”  
“Did I stutter?”  
“Feisty one, aren’t we?”  
Clarke opened her mouth to respond only to be interrupted when her mother’s voice sounded from behind her, making blue eyes turn away from the girl next door and see that Abby stood in her room.  
“Honey, I need your help downstairs.”  
“Ok.” Turning her head back to Raven, she nodded. “I have to go.”  
“Well, hello there.” Abby appeared by her side having walked fully into the room now and seeing who her daughter was talking to.  
"Hello, Mrs. G." Raven waved smiling back at the older blonde.  
"This is-" Clarke began.  
"Raven." Abby finished nodding her understanding. “It’s been a long time but I’d recognize your face anywhere.”  
"Yup." Raven grinned.  
"Well, it's good seeing you, but I need my daughter for a minute."  
"Right." Raven saluted and retreated back into her room, shutting the window and effectively ending any more conversation.  
Clarke picked up her sketchbook and stood up. As she walked passed her mother, her arm was caught and she saw that the older blonde was looking at her sketch.  
"I see you've gotten a lot better." Abby said quietly as she took the sketchbook from Clarke to get a closer look. "You did this all from memory?"  
"Yeah." Taking it back, and putting it back down, she shrugged, "It's not done though."  
"Of course." Abby nodded towards the bedroom door, "Shall we?"  
Clarke nodded and followed her mother downstairs.  
The rest of the weekend would be filled with unpacking and organizing after the moving van arrived. In no time they were settled and the house was beginning to look like a home once more with pictures up on the walls, knick-knacks scattered in various places, even the house plants made the trip and were now happily placed all about the downstairs.  
She had a few boxes left in her room needing unpacked by Sunday night, however wanting to get a good night's sleep caused her to shrug it off and leave it for later. As she lay back in her bed, she looked up at her ceiling and sighed. First days sucked. What was worse was that it was her last first day at a completely new school for her final year of high school. She just hoped that she'd mix in well and not stand out as the new girl all year. Or worse, be that girl whose dad died of cancer.  
***  
Orientation Day.  
Most schools only have one when you first arrive as a Freshman, but it was apparent that Arkadia High wasn’t like most schools. When Clarke arrived after being dropped off around the corner by her mother, she was met with the crowd of students in front of the school all doing what she herself was about to go do.  
Tables lined either side of the pathway leading to the front doors. Behind each, sat three faculty members all sorting through boxes and handing packets to the student in front of them. Scanning the signs displaying the alphabet, Clarke found the table that had a ‘G’ on a pole behind it and stood in line to receive her own Welcome packet.  
When it was her turn, she stepped in front of a small Asian woman who didn’t look up at her as she asked for her name.  
“Griffin.” Clarke replied waiting patiently as the woman began to search through the box.  
“Griffin…Griffin…There you are!” The woman looked up and gasped as she looked at her. “Oh, I am so sorry, it’s just that you look so much like your father.”  
“Yeah, I get that a lot.” Clarke smiled politely as she held out her hand for her packet. She was starting to wonder if everyone in this town knew her family.  
“I’m sorry to hear about what happened to him.” The packet was handed over and Clarke went to take it but the woman held it for a second, “He was a good man.”  
“Yes, he was.” Blue eyes darted away as the packet was released and she was free to walk away and collect herself as she felt the sadness wash over her.  
Opening her packet, she saw the orientation schedule and what was expected of her throughout the day. The whole school was to assemble in the auditorium at first bell before they’d be divided by grade and continue with the rest of their day. Also in the packet was her schedule for the first trimester and she was rather pleased that it was simple. Econ, US Government, Senior English, Art, AP Chemistry and Creative Writing were her classes she’d be taking with an open period between Art and AP Chemistry.  
“Hey.”  
Looking up, Clarke noticed the boy who’d sat behind her in the restaurant when they’d first arrived a couple days ago, standing beside her. “Uhm, hi.”  
“Clarke, right?” He asked shifting his packet from one hand to the other and holding his now free one out to her. “I’m Finn, Finn Collins.”  
“Yeah, I am.” She reluctantly offered her own hand and he grasped it, shaking it a second before releasing. “How’d you know my name?”  
“Word travels quickly.” Finn smiled and shrugged, “It’s not every day that a legendary family returns to Arkadia after being gone for so long.”  
“I highly doubt my family is legendary.” Clarke scoffed as she began walking towards the front doors.  
“On the contrary, Princess,” He fell in step beside her. “Your father is well known to the community.”  
“Was.” Clarke murmured looking away from him as she focused on following the crowd to where she hoped was the auditorium.  
“I’m sor-”  
“Don’t.” She interrupted as she was done with all the apologies she’d heard since her father’s death. “The most annoying thing someone can do but society has made customary is to apologize for a loved one’s death. It’s not your fault he died, it’s not anyone’s fault, ok? So, do me a favor and don’t apologize.”  
“You don’t like it when I call you ‘Princess’, do you, Princess?” He asked as if he didn’t hear a word she just said.  
Clarke shot him a look, annoyance clearly evident without speaking a word. She sighed in irritation and started walking faster to try to get away from him.  
It was to no avail as Finn immediately held his hands up in sign of surrender and nodded. “Ok! I won’t do it anymore. What classes are you taking?”  
Seeing that he wasn’t going away, Clarke held out her schedule for him to look at and was slightly happy when he sighed in disappointment after finding they didn’t have any classes together. Taking it back, they entered the auditorium and Clarke was quick to find a seat as Finn was ushered away from her side to go sit with some of his friends.  
“I’ll catch up to you later!” He called out as he walked away.  
Clarke rolled her eyes and continued to leaf through the papers in her hand. The noise level skyrocketed as more of the student body filed in and found seats, the first bell having sounded as they walked in and now they all waited for the late bell to sound and the assembly to begin. This was a first for Clarke as she was used to just going into her first period class to start her day and she’d be lying if she said it didn’t put her off a little being corralled with the whole student body.  
When the late bell sounded and the last of the students trickled in, Clarkes attention was brought to the podium in front of her where an older woman stood her eyes surveying the students in front of her. Her black tailored pant suit did little to soften her appearance and with the stern look upon her face, she looked downright frightening.  
Silence fell upon the room without her speaking a word. Clarke watched as her lips turned up slightly before she opened her mouth to speak. “Good morning, students. Welcome to a new year at Arkadia High. To those fresh faces among us who don’t know who I am, I am you Principal, Nia Izard. You may call me Principal Izard or Ms. Izard.”  
After introduction to the staff, Clarke began to drift off into her own thoughts. A slideshow played on the large screen at one point, showing pictures of the students and their adventures throughout the summer. She was all too happy when they were all dismissed and sent towards their first period class.  
***  
Clarke growled and punched her locker as the lock refused to budge after what felt like the millionth time of trying the code. She'd had no problems until now. Leaning against it, she blew the stray blonde strand of hair out of her face and looked around at the kids around her. Some stared back at her, whispering to their friends as they walked past, others didn't even acknowledge her. Groaning, she banged her head against the stupid locker.  
"You know, if you keep it up they're going to suspend you and charge you for property damage and that would be a record I’m sure.”  
Blue eyes rolled as Raven popped up beside her and shook her head, "You don't have anything better to do, do you?"  
"Actually, the locker you've been beating up would be mine." Raven smirked pointing to the one beside Clarke, "I'm guessing that one is yours."  
"This day's turning to shit." Clarke grumbled as she eyed the locker next to the one she'd been beating on and after attempting the code on it, she groaned again when the lock popped open.  
"See? Helps if you're at the right one." Raven said as she opened her own locker and stuffed some of her books into it. "Have you gotten your schedule yet?"  
"Yeah." Clarke shut her locker after putting her own books in, "Not that it's any of your business."  
"You know you should be trying harder to make friends here." Raven called after her as she started down the hallway, "It's a small town."  
"Goodbye, Raven." Clarke tossed over her shoulder as she headed towards her first period class.  
Behind her she didn't see the dirty blonde that walked up to her neighbor, nodding in her direction, "She's just a bundle of fun isn't she?"  
"Can it, Harper." Raven sighed, "She just got here after moving around her entire life. Wouldn't you be a little closed off?"  
"Maybe." Harper shrugged before looking back to the retreating back of Clarke, "I still don't like her."  
"You will." Raven too looked back towards her neighbor, "We need her and you'll deal with it."  
Harper muttered something unintelligible before starting down the hall in the opposite direction, "Let's go, or we'll be late."  
***  
Clarke sighed as she sat down in her next class. Halfway through her day and she was already beat. It was the same old song and dance with every class on the first day. You sit down, sometimes in assigned seats sometimes not, you listen to the teacher drone on and on about class rules and expectations, get handed a syllabus and spend the rest of the time doing nothing. The only difference was the class times were shortened due to the morning assembly, so it was a mad rush to get from one to another without being late.  
Fourth period was her Art class and this would be no different. She'd brought her sketch book from home and was working on the picture she'd done of the harbor when she felt a presence beside her. She audibly groaned when the grinning face of her neighbor looked back at her when she brought her head up to see who'd invaded her bubble.  
"That's really good." Raven whispered so as not to interrupt the teacher going on about their projects they'd be doing throughout the trimester.  
Clarke ignored her and continued to work, half listening to the teacher but mostly tuning out all around her. She had hoped this class would be different than the others, where she'd be able to be free to be herself and work in peace. Seeing as her neighbor apparently shared the class with her and was determined to be acquainted, she knew that plan was out the window.  
"It'd be a lot easier if you just gave in and quit being stubborn." Raven whispered smirking when Clarke looked up and glared at her.  
"I'm not being stubborn." Blue eyes looked back to the pad before looking up at the teacher to make sure they hadn't been heard, "I just don't feel like talking."  
"Then why is it whenever we do talk, it's like pulling teeth?"  
"That's just me."  
Both fell silent when the teacher came closer, handing out the class syllabus as he went and continued on past them to the other desks with students. Clarke looked over the paper, not really reading but trying her hardest not to give the darker girl reason to start talking to her again. It worked, for a few minutes.  
"I'm pretty sure you'll have that memorized if you keep looking at it like that."  
"I'm pretty sure you need to be quiet and pay attention."  
"I'm pretty sure you both should share with the class the important conversation you two seem to be having in the middle of me talking."  
Clarke could feel the heat immediately rise to her face as she looked sheepishly up at her teacher who stood a few feet away, arms crossed eyeing them. "We were-"  
"Sorry, teach." Raven interrupted her, picking up the sketch pad in front of Clarke and waving it slightly in his direction, "I was just commenting on Clarke's amazing talent for capturing the image of our beautiful harbor. After all, she's new and she draws it as if she'd grown up here."  
Their teacher slipped on the glasses that hung around his neck and stepped closer to take the sketch pad into his own hand. Clarke could feel her face get impossibly redder and she slumped down slightly as she felt the many pairs of eyes looking at her.  
"It is a wonderful sketch, Ms. Griffin. You've some amazing talent there. Don't lose it." The pad was placed back down in front of her, "Now, if you two would refrain from interrupting again, I shall continue."  
"Of course." Raven smiled at him before he turned away to rattle on more about the classroom rules and what you can and cannot use the art supplies for.  
After a few minutes, Clarke felt her face return to normal. Raven thankfully didn't attempt another conversation and she was starting to hope that it would continue to be that way until the bell released them. She was wrong.  
A note was slid over to her from her neighbor and she rolled her eyes as she read it.  
A group of us always hang out at the Boat House after school. You should come.  
Clarke quickly wrote a response and slid it back to the brunette. Later she regretted the decision to do so as they began the note chain back and forth.  
Sorry. I have homework to do.  
Homework? It's the first day of school! Join us! I promise it'll totally be worth it.  
No.  
Pretty please?  
I said no.  
You're a tough one to convince, aren't you?  
Pay attention.  
I am paying attention. He's talking about how to use the paint brushes. Say you'll come.  
No!  
Alright. It's your loss. You know where to go if you change your mind.  
The answer will still be no, Reyes.  
Whatever you say, Griffindor.  
Clarke growled as she crumpled up the sheet of paper after reading the nickname and threw it into the garbage container at the end of their row across from where she sat. A few eyes looked at her in surprise and she just shrugged and looked back towards the teacher.  
"Impressive." Raven muttered in her direction.  
"Not really." Clarke whispered back before pulling out a clean sheet of notebook paper to work on the art prompt they'd been given to kill the remaining time left until the bell sounded.  
***  
Clarke breathed in deeply as she got out of the car. Luckily, her mother was thrilled with the idea of her hanging out with her classmates and allowed her to use the car to drive to the Boat House. Now that she was there, she could feel the nerves begin to flare up and heart begin to race. Normally, she wasn't this nervous when meeting new people, but ever since this move she found herself acting completely opposite to her usual self.  
The remaining part of her school day was uneventful and she was relieved when she was able to go home. Her teachers all seemed nice, the students kept mostly to themselves or their friends. None bothered to talk to her except her pesky neighbor, to which as the day dragged on, she was actually finding herself comfortable with the idea of starting a new friendship.  
Hence the ringing of the Boat House bell as she walked through the door after standing by her car debating on going in for five minutes.  
"Griffindor!"  
Clarke's jaw clenched upon hearing Raven's cheerful voice the minute she was spotted and she forced a smile and waved slightly before making her way to the group in the corner.  
"Guys! Guys!" Raven said loudly catching everyone's attention at the table. "This is my neighbor, Clarke Griffin."  
"Hi." The blonde smiled shyly as many pairs of eyes turned to her and said their greetings.  
"Come, take a seat." Raven pulled a chair up to the table and moved back to her own. "I’m glad you changed your mind."  
"Yeah." Clarke mumbled as she took her seat and looked around the table at the new faces.  
"Oh, sorry, where are my manners?" Raven nodded towards the girl to her left, "This is Harper, Zoe, Finn, Monty, and Jasper."  
"Hello." Clarke said again as each person nodded their heads in acknowledgment when introduced, even though she already knew Finn from earlier in the day. Looking to the brown shaggy haired boy she asked, "Jasper? You wouldn't be the Chef here would you?"  
"That's me!" Jasper grinned standing and offering his hand. "Maya told me you and your Mom enjoyed my food the other day."  
"It was delicious." Clarke smiled genuinely as she shook his hand.  
"So, is it true you guys moved here because your dad died?" The girl to Raven’s left, Harper, asked.  
"Harp!" The darker girl glared and elbowed her friend.  
"Yes." Clarke swallowed the lump in her throat that immediately formed, looking directly at the dirty blonde. "I'm not surprised the rumor mill runs just as fast here as the last school I attended."  
"What happened?" The Asian boy, Monty asked before pausing and adding, "That is if you don't mind my asking."  
"Not at all." She looked towards him and smiled softly, "It was cancer. He had been diagnosed unbeknownst to my mother and I over a year ago. He kept it from us until it was bad enough that it started showing and he was forced to tell us."  
"I'm sorry to hear that." Raven said placing a hand on the blonde's shoulder. The others around the table murmured similar sentiments.  
Clarke nodded once and smoothly wiped the tear that fell from the corner of her eye as she brought her hand to run through her hair. "We're coping, but it's still hard."  
"Well, then it's a good thing you moved back to Arkadia!" Jasper smiled at her lifting his glass. "We're a weird bunch of fools, but we're the best around! May Arkadia welcome you back and you find those kindred spirits to lean on within our ragtag group! To Clarke!"  
"To Clarke!" The others said in unison, lifting their own glasses.  
Clarke's face turned a slight shade of red as she was given Raven's water glass to join the toast. She sat back to sip at it as conversation of how the school day went broke out throughout the group and she listened. Maya stopped by to chat with them for a few moments, getting Clarke lemonade and others their refills before she disappeared to continue her work.  
"How are you liking Arkadia so far?"  
Blue eyes looked over to see Finn had moved seats to sit directly beside her. He smiled a crooked grin at her, "It's ok, still getting settled."  
"Did you move around a lot?" He asked taking a sip of his soda.  
"Pretty much." The intense look he was giving her, made her shift uneasily and she hoped it went unnoticed.  
"We're going to another hang out spot after this, you going to join us there as well?"  
"I don't think so." Clarke declined shaking her head before pulling her phone out of her pocket and checking the time. "I actually am expected for dinner soon."  
"That's a shame." Finn moved closer to her, "I was really looking forward to spending more time getting to know you."  
"Jeez, subtle much?" Raven threw paper at him causing him to move away from the blonde, "Lay off her."  
"Shut up, Raven." Finn glared at her and looked back to Clarke, "I apologize if I was too forward."  
"It's-"  
“Go crawl over to the other end of the table." Raven interrupted her neighbor before she could say anymore.  
Finn looked as if he was going to say something else, but instead decided to throw an apologetic look towards Clarke before moving back to his original seat between Monty and Jasper.  
"Don't feel bad if you want to put him in his place." Raven said looking back to Clarke, "He's an asshole."  
"Still bitter about the break up?" Finn blew a kiss at her, "I know you still want this."  
"Fuck off, Collins." Raven hissed in his direction. "Just be glad I actually like Monty and Jasper enough to allow your slimy ass to sit at our table."  
"They broke up before the end of Junior year." Maya said sitting in the seat Finn had just vacated, causing Clarke to jump slightly. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you, I'm on break."  
"It's ok." Blue eyes looked back to her phone and shrugged. "I should probably get back home anyways."  
"Awe! Come on and stay longer." Raven tore her eyes from glaring at the dark haired boy and looked pleadingly at her neighbor. "Just for a little bit?"  
"Sorry, I really should go." Clarke declined as she stood up and smiled at the group. "It was nice meeting all of you, though."  
"Way to go asshole, you scared her off." Raven growled at Finn as the blonde started walking away.  
Clarke chose not to make any further comments before walking to the car. Her phone vibrated causing her to stop on the sidewalk to answer the text. She paid little attention to the three motorcycles that zoomed past her, parking at the end of the lot. Stuffing her phone back in her pocket she fished the keys from her other one as she continued walking to her car. She got in the driver’s seat and buckled up before inserting the keys into the ignition, she frowned when the engine failed to start. Trying again, she grumbled as it failed again.  
"What the hell?"  
Trying once more, just for the hell of it, she sighed in relief as the engine decided to listen this time. Sitting back and looking at the gauges, she shrugged as nothing seemed to be off. Once she got home, she'd tell her mother about the incident so she could take it in to be checked out.  
Just as she was about to put the car into reverse, she saw the smoke billowing from under the hood and creep through the vents into the cab.  
"Son of a bitch!"  
Her heart began to race as she turned the ignition off and fumbled with her belt to be released so she could get out of the car. Flames flew up from beneath the hood causing her to jump back into the seat and she started freaking out when her hands couldn’t get the belt loose.  
"Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck! God damn it!"  
Her belt would not budge, the mechanism jamming with the force that she was using to try to break free. The smoke filling the car was starting to get to her and she began to cough, her eyes watering as she tried focusing on the belt. Frantic knocking on the window beside her made her jump again, the smoke so thick she couldn't see who it was.  
"Unlock your door!" She heard the muffled shout over the crackling of the flames.  
Cursing the manufacturer for creating locks that automatically lock once you turn on the car, she reached over unlocking the door and tried to open it, but she found it wouldn't budge either. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she struggled to breathe and thoughts of dying in this car went through her mind.  
“It won’t open!”  
"Cover your eyes!"  
Barely hearing the directive, she turned away from her window and gasped as seconds later there was a thump against the window. On the second thump, the glass shattered and cloth covered hands appeared through the smoke to clear what shards were still clinging in place. With the window now open, the smoke began to clear some and Clarke looked over to see concerned green eyes looking at her before they glanced at the belt still holding her in place.  
"Can you unbuckle yourself?"  
"It's stuck." Clarke shook her head, coughing hard.  
A loud popping noise from beneath the hood caused her savior to jump back. Panic began to settle in as the heat from the flames was growing more intense as the minutes passed. It seemed like forever before the girl was back and hopping up slightly through the window.  
"Stay still!" She ordered as a pocket knife was snapped open and tanned hands grabbed at the belt to start cutting through it. "I'm gonna get you out of here!"  
Clarke's head was swimming. She was struggling to stay conscious as her ears began ringing and her vision started tunneling. Her head felt really light, and she was finding it hard to breathe. She vaguely felt the belt loosen as the knife finally cut through it enough to get it off of her.  
"Lincoln!" She heard her savior shout as she felt herself being pulled through the window. Another pair of hands, bigger than the girl bravely risking her life to help her, grabbed her and at last she was pulled from the burning car and being carried as far away from the inferno as possible.  
"Clarke!"  
"Is she ok?"  
"Somebody call an ambulance!"  
"One is on its way! So is the fire truck!"  
Voices all around her sounded muffled and far away. She felt the many hands upon her until one strong voice carried over them all.  
"Get back and give her some air! NOW!"  
At once, all the hands were removed until the blonde could only feel one pair. Her eyes remained closed as she tried focusing on breathing. In and out. In. Out. In. Out. Her heartbeat was racing in her head and she groaned as she tried taking a deeper breath to calm it, but was only met with another fit of coughing as her throat constricted from the smoke inhalation.  
"Hey, hey…you're alright."  
"Hurts." Clarke croaked wincing at the cracking of her voice.  
"Help is on the way." The voice was close to her ear now and she felt fingers stroking her arm. "How many fingers are touching your arm?"  
Clarke breathed in focusing on the hand touching her and counted, "Four."  
"Good."  
"Here's some water." She heard Maya's voice come closer.  
"Can you sit up?"  
Wincing slightly as she was helped to sit, Clarke finally cracked her eyes open to see the many people surrounding her. All with matching looks of concern and eyeing her. When her eyes looked over, she was met with the sight of her savior and felt her heart skip a beat.  
Soft green eyes looked at her, concern evident in them and something else she couldn't describe. The girls tanned face showed under a purple bandana that was wrapped around the top of her head, long brunette hair poking out from beneath it.  
The glass Maya had brought over was put into her hands and she slowly sipped from it until it was gone. Her breathing was coming easier and she could no longer feel the pounding of her heartbeat in her head.  
A loud booming sound caused everyone to jump and blue eyes traced over to where her mother's car was completely engulfed in flames. A soft whimper escaped through her lips at the thought of having just been saved from that fiery hell and she felt the reassuring squeeze of her arm from the green eyed beauty beside her.  
"You'll be ok, Clarke." Her savior said, causing an involuntary shiver to run down the blonde’s back.  
"Thank you." Watery eyes looked to her, "Thank you for saving my life."  
"You're welcome." A slight smile appeared.  
"Lexa?" A tall tanned man called out causing both girls to look his way. Beside him was two paramedics. "They'll take it from here."  
Clarke breathed in deeply as the brunette moved away to allow the medics to do their job. She bit her lower lip at the sudden loss of security she'd felt being so close to the girl and began to feel her heart beating slightly faster as she was looked over.  
Around her, some of those gathered began to move away and go back to what they were doing beforehand. Talking of course about the heroic rescue that had happened and watching as the firefighters put out the flames eating away at her car.  
No one caught the look of death Raven was shooting towards Harper who just shrugged innocently.  
***


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Back at it again, my Knights! Thank you for the Welcome Backs, the love was truly appreciated! As I reread this chapter, I decided to keep most of it in tact and only add a small bit to it. So, for those of you who read the older version it should look plenty familiar. A mighty thanks to my wonderful Beta who did a fantastic job at getting part one back to me to post! Enjoy! ~RK

…  
Clarke breathed in deeply, her lungs filling with the clean oxygen being pushed through the tubes that hooked over her ears, ran across her face and into her nose. The medics on scene weren't too keen on allowing her to go home without being assessed at the hospital first once they'd taken her vitals and done their assessment.  
She was helped up and into the ambulance that would take her in. The doors were shut and as they pulled away, Clarke saw, before turning a corner, the sight of her savior heading towards the motorcycles, the tall guy, Lincoln, following her.  
Despite her best effort in arguing that she was fine and could walk, she had been wheeled into the ER by gurney and pushed into a room where a team of nurses took over and began hooking her up to all kinds of machines, one in which she actually started enjoying when she began to breathe easier.  
Hearing a knock on the glass wall in front of her, she looked up to see the one person she didn’t want to see at the moment, popping his head around the curtain and smiling at her. “Mind if I come in?”  
“Yeah, actually I do.” Clarke huffed as Finn walked in anyway.   
“How are you feeling?” He asked as he stood beside the bed.   
“With my fingers.” Clarke said sarcastically as she shifted to sit up a bit more. “I’m feeling better.”  
“That’s good. We were all worried when we saw the flames start up and you couldn’t get out. I was running out of the restaurant when that girl showed up.”   
“Yeah, thank god for that girl.”  
Clarke’s head perked up as the new voice sounded from the door. When blue eyes found green she smiled, “Hi.”  
“Hello.” The brunette nodded at her before glancing at Finn, “I’m sorry, I was just dropping by to make sure you’re doing ok.”  
“Of course.” Clarke shifted to sit up a bit more as she watched the brunette move further in to the room and stand at the end of the bed. Their eyes connected and they both smiled again. “I’m doing better now that I’m not trapped inside of a burning car.”  
“You look better now that you’re not trapped inside of a burning car.” The brunette shifted and Clarke realized she’d had her hand behind her back and was now bringing it to view. “It’s custom for those in the hospital to receive gifts.”  
Seeing the sunflower, Clarke smiled bigger and reached for it, “Thank you! You didn’t have to do that.”  
“It’s no biggie.” Green eyes connected with blue once more, only for them to both shift over to Finn who cleared his throat.   
“I just remembered I have something to go do.” He smiled slightly at Clarke, “I’m glad you’re ok.”  
“Thanks, Finn.” Clarke forced a smile upon her face as he turned towards the brunette to leave. She watched the two share a look before he hurried out and left them alone.  
Silence fell upon the room, until Clarke watched the girl take another step closer maneuvering around the bed, her hand reaching out towards the blonde. "I'm Lexa, by the way."  
Clarke's hand grasped the one offered, "Clarke…but you already knew that."  
Lexa laughed, and the smile that graced that beautifully tanned face made Clarke’s heart leap in her chest at the delightful sound. Neither girl wanted to be the first to remove their hand from the other, and it wasn't until the heart monitor started beeping loudly and frequently that they broke the connection with a start.  
A nurse came running in and over to the monitor a moment later, then looked to Clarke after calming the technology, "You doing ok?"  
Heat rose to her cheeks as the blonde nodded, shrugging as if she had no idea what happened. The nurse pursed her lips together, nodding firmly she pushed a few more buttons on the screen of the monitor before leaving the room without another word. Both girls looked to each other again and grinned.  
"So, Clarke, I-"  
"Clarke Griffin? Where is she?" The frantic voice of Abby's carried through the glass door that had been left ajar, interrupting the brunette from what she was about to say. Within the next second, the older Griffin woman flew into the room to Clarke's side.  
"Clarke! Sweetheart, are you ok?" Abby asked taking her daughters hand and looking her over. "When Raven showed up at our front door and said there had been a fire and you were taken to the hospital I nearly lost it."  
"I'm ok, Mom." Clarke rolled her eyes at her overdramatic mother. "Lexa got to me before I was seriously injured and the only problem I had was breathing. But I'm fine now. I'm so sorry about the car."  
"Lexa?" Abby turned to the other girl she'd failed to see in her haste to get to her daughter’s bedside, her presence seemingly more important than the topic of their car being a burnt shell. She watched as her mother looked at Lexa until a look of recognition passed over her and she asked, "You wouldn't happen to be Alexandria Woods, would you?"  
Clarke looked over at the brunette, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion as the girl’s demeanor had completely changed from the smiling vision of beauty she'd seen only minutes ago. Instead she saw those green eyes harden, that strong jaw was clenched and her posture was rigid straight. The blonde also noticed she'd stepped away from the bedside at some point as well.  
"I think I'd better go." Green eyes looked from the older blonde back to Clarke. "Again, I'm glad you're ok."  
"Thank you." A flash of softness in those eyes was seen by blue before Lexa looked back to Abby and it was immediately gone once more. She nodded curtly and turned to leave the room.  
Looking to her mother, Clarke raised her eyebrow as she noticed the same rigid posture Lexa had in her mother's stance. "What was that about?"  
"Long story." Abby turned to face her daughter once more, "It'd be a good idea if you avoided that girl. Her parents and I go way back and they're nothing but trouble."  
"She saved my life. The least you could have done was thank her." Her mother's behavior unnerved her and she was a bit angry with the way she was acting, "If it wasn't for her, I might be dead right now."  
"Don't say that." Abby's eyes filled with tears, "I can't stand the thought of losing you too."  
"Like it or not, it's true. I owe her my life."  
"That may be, but I still don't want you near her."  
"This was the second time I've even seen her!" Clarke glared. "When can I go home? I'm tired and want to go to bed."  
"I'll go check with the nurse's station." Abby said and she quickly moved from the room.  
Clarke laid back and sighed. She thought about the last couple of hours and her eyebrows furrowed at the thought of how all those around her seemed to be acting strange. Stranger than what should have been considered normal in any other given circumstance.   
When a knock came to her door, she had to stifle a groan as Finn’s head appeared once more. “Uhm…hi. I forgot something.”  
A blonde eyebrow rose as he walked in and grabbed a set of keys by the sink and then turned towards her, handing her a teddy bear that said ‘Get Well’ on it. “Thanks.” She mumbled her eyes catching the tag still clasped to one of its arms from the hospital gift shop, before setting it down.  
“You’re welcome.” He grinned toothily.   
“Everything is looking good, they’re going to take your vitals one more time and then you’ll be released.” Abby said as she walked in looking at what appeared to be Clarke’s chart. When she noticed Finn standing beside her daughter she smiled warmly, “Hello!”  
“Hello, Mrs. Griffin.” Finn replied offering his hand. “Finn Collins, I go to school with Clarke.”  
“Hello, Finn.” Abby shook his hand. “Checking on my daughter?”  
“Yes, ma’am.” He nodded causing Clarke to roll her eyes unnoticed by the other two.  
“Well, isn’t that sweet of you!” The older Griffin looked over to her daughter, “Isn’t that sweet of him?”  
“Yeah.” Clarke replied forcing yet another smile. She watched as Finn waved goodbye and walk out the door.  
Abby turned and gave her daughter a knowing look, “He’s kinda cute.”  
“Mooooom!” Clarke groaned as the blood pressure cuff around her arm sprang to life and began pumping up, causing her to wince as it blew up to squeeze her bicep tightly. She only hoped she'd be let go sooner rather than later.  
…  
Word of the incident spread quickly, and it was all anyone seemed to want to talk about the following day at school. Clarke managed to dodge many questions and avoid her peers for the most part. Surprisingly, Raven sat quietly in fourth period, not once attempting conversation like she had the day before.  
She had an open fifth period, to which she decided to escape outside and sit against a tree to draw. She'd all but finished her harbor sketch by the time the bell signaled the passing period before sixth period began. She packed up and headed into the direction of her AP Chemistry class. Two new additions to the class caused her face to scowl, as Raven and Harper sat behind and to the left of where her assigned seat was.  
"What's with the face, Griffindor?" Raven asked as the blonde took her seat.  
Clarke responded as she pulled out her Chem book, "You two weren't here yesterday, what gives?"  
"Ooh, I'm beginning to think someone doesn't like us." Harper said shouldering Raven who ignored her.  
"First couple of days there's always schedule changes." The darker girl smiled politely and shrugged, "The other AP Chem class was overcrowded so we volunteered to join this one."  
"Right." Clarke nodded in understanding. The first week was always hectic no matter what school she attended so the excuse was plausible.  
"You doing ok?" Raven asked; the concern evident in the tone of her voice.  
"I'm fine." Clarke replied flipping her book open. She heard Harper say something in a low tone to her neighbor but couldn't make out what exactly. Opening her mouth to say something, she was interrupted by their teacher clearing her throat and starting class.  
Once told that they'd be doing a hands-on experiment, a chorus of cheers went through the room. Beakers were passed out and they were promptly given a safety lecture in regards to the Bunsen burners they'd be using throughout the lesson. Clarke rolled her eyes as two boys in the back were already messing with the flame, running their finger over it and daring the other to do so as well.  
Looking back at her own work, she began to follow the instructions given to her and slowly started mixing her chemicals. She looked at the concoction before jotting down a few notes, when she looked back up her eyes widened at the rapid bubbling within the beaker above the flame.  
"Ms. Griffin, please turn your burner down." She heard called out and she nodded following the direction.  
After turning the knob down, her eyebrows furrowed when the rapid bubbling continued. She decided to completely turn the burner off, but the contents kept going as if it was still alight.  
"Ms. Griffin!" Her teacher called out right before the blonde jumped back when the beaker suddenly shattered, the chemicals sloshing over the counter and onto the floor.  
"Whoa!" Raven's arms were catching her as her foot slipped on the now wet floor. "Are you ok?"  
"Are you ok?" Her teacher repeated as she came around to Clarke's side and looked her up and down. "Did any of it get on your skin?"  
"I don't think so." Blue eyes tracked down her own body groaning when she realized her clothes had chemicals on them.  
"I'm going to need you to report to the nurse’s office so we can get you a change of clothes." Her teacher said seeing the same thing. "Go now, I'll get this cleaned up while you're gone."  
"I'll escort her." Raven chimed in. "You know, to make sure she gets there ok."  
"That's not-" Clarke began.  
"Thank you, Raven. Please be careful walking around this mess and hurry back." Her teacher interrupted her causing the blonde to huff in annoyance as the two started for the office. She was looking down and didn't see the glare Raven tossed back at Harper.  
The two neighbors walked in silence until Clarke couldn't hold her tongue any longer, "You know you didn't have to take me to the office. I know how to get there."  
"Yes, but considering yesterday and today's incidents, can you blame me for wanting to make sure you got there in one piece?" Raven snapped back at her.  
Clarke realized she was being harsh when the girl scowled and looked away from her. After all, she'd only been trying to help and had been nothing but nice to the blonde since she'd arrived. Sighing she opened her mouth to apologize but was stopped when the darker girl came to a stop in front of a door.  
"In here." Raven opened the door and waved at the brunette sitting behind the desk. "Clarke Griffin. Chemical accident five minutes ago. She needs a change of clothes."  
"Go ahead and take a seat, Ms. Griffin." The polite woman smiled at Clarke who did as she was told. "Any injuries?"  
"No." Clarke mumbled as she was looked over again. "Just my clothes."  
"Ok, I'll be right back."  
Blue eyes looked over to her neighbor who had taken a seat and was trying to look like she wasn't bored, she failed miserably at it though. "Look, I'm sorry for being rude."  
"You weren't being rude." Raven said her dark eyes tracking over to Clarke. "You were being a bitch."  
Clarke's mouth dropped open automatically to argue, but closed and she nodded her head, "I suppose I have been."  
"Yup." Raven sat up a little more in her seat, "Look, I know you don't want to trust me for whatever reasons you harbor, but I know this town and I know the people in it. You could do a hell of a lot worse than me for a friend."  
Clarke thought about what her mother said about the Woods family and even though she didn't see it in Lexa, she nodded her head in agreement, "Truce?"  
"Forgiven." Raven smiled taking the blonde's hand as it was offered to her.  
"Here we are." The nurse returned with a change of clothes hanging over her arm. "I had to run to the gym for a second as we haven't stocked our spare clothes yet. So, these will have to do."  
"Thank you." Clarke smiled accepting them and standing up to go to the adjacent bathroom to change. She stripped off her jeans and shirt, replacing them with the clothes she'd been given. They fit perfectly and were rather comfortable. The shirt had 'Arkadia High School Home of the Ambassadors' in red, black, and silver on it along with the school logo. The sweats held only 'A.H.S' on the bottom.  
"My, my, don't you look all school spiritie!" Raven grinned as the blonde reemerged from the bathroom.  
"Shut it, Rae." Clarke said, the smile breaking the bite she intended in her comeback.  
"Oh! She's nicknamed me!" Raven jumped up excitedly, "This means we're besties now!"  
"Oh my god." Clarke rolled her eyes as a dark arm was hooked around hers and she was tugged towards the door.  
"Have a good rest of your day, girls." The nurse chimed in shaking her head at Raven's antics as she continued to document the visit into the system.  
…  
Clarke was extremely glad that the rest of the day went smoothly. Then again, she only had seventh period and then she was done. The next few days went by without incidents either, and most of her peers had started talking less and less about the 'accident prone blonde'. Maya had somehow talked her into helping her Friday after school with the last push to raise money for the schools 'Welcome Back Dance' that would be on Saturday. So, after her mother dropped her off in the rental car they'd procured for the next week until they found a new vehicle, she found herself walking along the harbors pier with Maya, asking anyone they'd see if they'd buy raffle tickets for a drawing they were holding for various prizes.  
"How are you liking Arkadia so far, Clarke?" Maya asked smiling at the man who just bought four tickets before they continued on.  
"It's ok." The blonde shrugged before stopping to ask a woman they were passing if she'd buy tickets, when she declined they continued walking. "It's definitely been an interesting week."  
"I'd say." Maya laughed, "I thought it would never end!"  
"Me neither!" Clarke laughed as well as they made their way back to the Boat House.  
"Did you see what Jasper came up with for our next menu item?" Maya asked jumping excitedly, "It's totally awesome!"  
"No, I haven't. What is it?" They began climbing the stairs to the restaurant door.  
"He calls it the ‘Arker’. It's basically a hamburger on steroids."  
They both started laughing as Clarke opened the door, she was looking at Maya about to say something, not paying attention to where she was walking or the fact that someone else was walking out at the same moment. The two bodies collided, Clarke carrying more force than the unsuspecting patron, and they fell backwards into the restaurant.  
Clarke’s eyes widened in recognition as she looked up to see she had landed right on top of the brunette, “Lexa?”  
Green eyes looked back at her in just as much shock and slight amusement at their situation. “Clarke.”  
"Lexa, this is a family restaurant." Another woman called making them both look up. "Take it back to the apartment would you?"  
"Shut up, Anya." Lexa growled looking back up at Clarke giving her a pointed look, "If you'd get off me, I'd appreciate it."  
"Ugh!" Clarke groaned as she scurried to get up and offered a hand to help the brunette up. "I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying attention."  
"Apparently." Lexa brushed at the back of her jeans and looked over at the other woman, Anya. "Let's go, Lincoln and Octavia are waiting for us."  
Clarke was brushed aside as they walked past her and out of the restaurant. Her mouth closed and she looked up thanking whoever was paying attention that she hadn't walked into the other girl as she noticed the drink carrier in her hands. That would have been a giant mess she didn’t need. Ignoring the brass avoidance of the girl who'd saved her, she followed Maya over to their group's usual table to tally up their profits, where Raven, Harper, Finn and Monty already sat.  
"What's up with you and the Woods girl?" Raven asked when they settled into their chairs.  
"Nothing." Clarke shrugged, "We just seem to keep running into each other."  
Raven grinned and winked at Clarke, "I bet."  
"Oh, shut up!" A wrapper was thrown at the darker girl who laughed and dodged it easily.  
"I wouldn't mind running into Anya." Raven smirked, "She's hot."  
"Ex-boyfriend sitting right here." Finn said waving his hand, "I don't want to hear that shit."  
"Oh, you're still here?" Raven rolled her eyes giving him an annoyed look, "I thought you left."  
"You're such a bitch." He scoffed.  
"And you're an asshole, what's your point?" She shot back.  
"Guys, seriously!" Maya intervened, "We can't go one day without you two arguing can we?"  
"Nope." They said in unison.  
"At least they agree on something." Clarke joked grinning as her neighbor gave her an exasperated look.  
"Did Clarke Griffin crack a joke?" Dark eyes lit up in amusement, "Mark the calendar people! I do believe she just cracked a joke!"  
"Yeah, nice one, Princess." Finn said smiling charmingly at the blonde.  
Blue eyes narrowed at the nickname, "Don't call me that."  
"Whatever you say." He raised his hands in surrender and turned back to Monty to continue their conversation.  
Clarke continued counting what bills she had from the tickets she sold and wrote down the amount on the register slip Maya gave her to keep track.  
"So, Clarke," Harper said catching her attention, "You going to the dance tomorrow?"  
Shrugging her shoulders, blue eyes glanced up before looking back down at the new stack of bills she was counting, "I'm not sure."  
"You should totally come!" Maya smiled nudging the blonde, "It'll be fun."  
"Easy for you to say," Clarke looked back at the service window that showed the bobbing head of Jasper while he listened to music as he cooked in the kitchen, "You have a date."  
"You could come with me." Finn said having caught what she said, "I promise to be completely honorable."  
"Not in your lifetime, Loverboy." Raven sneered, "She has better taste than to accept my sloppy seconds."  
"Seriously?" Finn glared at her and shook his head, "You can't butt out for two minutes can you?"  
"Not when-"  
"Guys! Guys!" Clarke interrupted the two as they started to argue again. Looking to Finn she shook her head, "Sorry, but if I go, I go alone." She rolled her eyes as she noticed her neighbor stick her tongue out at him, "But not because you're Raven's sloppy seconds."  
"Hey, now!" Raven looked at her, "Girl code, Griffindor!"  
Clarke laughed and shook her head, "I'm not looking to be with anyone right now, Rae, so chill out."  
"So, I do have a chance then?" Finn asked grinning as he sat up straighter.  
Blue eyes rolled as she looked back at him and shook her head, "Shut up, Collins."  
"My girl!" Raven laughed at the defeated look on his face and high fived the blonde.  
They all laughed, well except for Finn, and continued to talk about the upcoming plans for the dance. Who was going with who, and what they were wearing. Before they knew it, the man who'd spoken to Abby when they'd arrived, Marcus, called loudly that it was about time to close up shop and to get out before he pushed them out. The teens just laughed at him and cleaned up their table before they left.  
"Listen, Clarke," Finn placed his hand on her elbow as she and Raven started for Raven's car. "Can I talk to you a moment?"  
"Bug off, Collins." Raven hissed.  
"I'll meet you at the car." Clarke said before he could say anything else and they argued again. "Give us a minute."  
"Yeah, sure." She could tell her friend was reluctant to leave her, but did so anyway.  
Clarke looked back to Finn who smiled at her, "You've got a minute."  
"Were you serious about not going with me to the dance?" Finn tilted his head to the side, "I know I may seem like an asshole, but I really am a good guy. It's why Raven doesn't completely keep me away from our friends."  
"While I believe that to be true," She tucked a stray blonde strand of hair behind her ear, "I was serious when I said I don't want to start anything with anyone right now."  
"Ok, well, if you change your mind." Finn handed her a piece of paper with his number on it. Before he opened his mouth to speak, the insistent honking from Raven made them jump slightly, "I'll be at the dance, you'll be at the dance, we could still dance together."  
Blue eyes rolled as she started backing away towards Raven's car, "Later, Collins."  
"Later, Princess." He called after her smirking as she glared at him.  
"I said-"  
"-don't call me that." They said together but he waived her off, "Looks like a Princess, acts like a Princess, will be called a Princess."  
Clarke ignored him and turned her back to open the passenger door, "Get me out of here." She said to her neighbor who laughed and hit the gas pedal, speeding away from the boy still standing on the sidewalk looking after them.  
…  
Saturday morning was filled with pure laziness as Clarke laid around in bed, watching Netflix on her laptop. She'd binged watched a majority of season three of Once Upon a Time and was about to start the seventeenth episode when Raven's head popped into her doorway grinning at her.  
"I thought I recognized that theme song." Raven bounced into the room, holding a dry cleaning bag to which Clarke could only assume had her dress in it. "Come on, woman! Stop that before you get sucked in and let's get ready!"  
"The dance isn't for another couple of hours, Rae." Clarke sighed looking back at her laptop screen. "Besides, this is the one where Regina teaches Emma magic."  
"Who do you ship?" Raven had set her dress onto the back of the desk chair and moved over to the bed, "Please for the love of god don't tell me you ship OutlawQueen or CaptainSwan."  
"SwanQueen all day, every day!" Clarke grinned high fiving her friend who had squealed and jumped onto the bed beside her.  
"SwanQueen is definitely endgame." Raven fluffed one of Clarke's pillows more and got comfortable.  
"Agreed." The blonde muttered, ignoring her friend as she was engrossed in the episode already.  
"Girls, do you need anything?" Abby called from the doorway as she tightened a stud earring.  
"No, Mom." Blue eyes stayed glued to the screen.  
"Nope, we're good, Mrs. G." Raven's mimicked Clarke as her eyes stayed on the screen as well.  
"Ok, have fun at the dance, Clarke keep your ringer on in case I call you later." Abby shook her head at the teens who were hardly paying attention. "Money is on the counter for food, I'll be home in the morning. Bye, girls!"  
"Bye, Mom."  
"Bye, Mrs. G."  
Abby chuckled to herself as she left down the hallway.  
"Think they'll make SwanQueen canon?" Raven asked after their episode finished and they'd began to ready themselves for the dance.  
"Highly doubt it." Clarke shimmied into her leggings and pulled her blue and white halter top on.  
"I hope they do." A simple black dress was slid over Raven's shoulders and down her body to settle before she turned her back to her friend, "Zipper?"  
"Sure thing." Clarke stepped closer and helped her pulling the zipper up. "So, I know you've been with Finn, but you keep hinting at women, does that make you-"  
"Bisexual?" Raven interrupted her turning to view how the dress looked on her in the body mirror on the blonde's wall. "I hate labels but if you wanna say that then sure."  
"It's not like I have a problem with it." Clarke moved over to her desk to start applying a little bit of make-up. "I'd hate to be a hypocrite."  
"Ooooh, Griffindor swings for both teams?" Raven grinned at her as she too stepped closer to do the same. "We should totally go on a double date sometime!"  
"Maybe." Clarke shrugged noncommittally.  
"Just not with Finn." Raven made a gagging noise making them both laugh. "I can't believe you kept his number."  
"Hey, you never know when it might come in handy." Clarke pushed away once she was done and stood up, "Besides, with my track record as of late, I might need his help if a fire breaks out or beakers explode."  
A guilty look flashed quickly across Raven's face but the blonde didn't catch it. The darker girl just smiled and raised an eyebrow, "What, you didn't get Lexa's number to have her play ‘Knight in Shining Armor’ again?"  
"Pfft! As if." Clarke rolled her eyes, "I don't know what her deal is, but she's been acting weird around me since she came to my hospital room after the car fire."  
"I thought I'd seen her leaving on her Harley." Raven shrugged, "Eh, let's not think too much of it and go have some fun, shall we?"  
"Yes, we shall." Clarke laughed as she took her friend's elbow and they headed through the house to Raven's car.  
…  
The dance was in full swing when they arrived. They found their group rather quickly as Jasper seemed to be the highlight of everyone's entertainment on the dance floor. Even Clarke had to laugh at the boy's antics as he danced awkwardly, the random goggles around his neck bouncing against his chest with every twist and turn until he finally slid them up over his messy brown hair to settle on his forehead.  
They'd been there an hour, dancing away to the music playing from a laptop and having a good time before it was announced that the raffle had raised enough money for a local deejay who'd just arrived and would be setting up.  
Clarke excused herself, telling Raven she would be back that she needed some fresh air and to cool off. She fended off Finn's attempt to join her and maneuvered her way through the crowded gym to one of the side doors that stood propped open. Pulling her phone out to check the time and seeing her mother had tried calling her, she ran into a solid body as she crossed the door threshold.  
Her hand immediately reached out and grabbed the flailing arm, but it was too late, a familiar brunette fell to the ground, the box she was carrying landing beside her.  
"You've got to be kidding me!" Lexa huffed glaring at Clarke, "Are you usually this accident prone or are you just trying to come onto me? 'Cause I gotta say, this is pushing my limits."  
Heat rose to the blonde's cheeks as she'd once again embarrassed herself in front of this girl and she shook her head, "I'm sorry, I was just trying to get some fresh air. My mom called me and I wasn't-"  
"-paying attention to where you were walking." Lexa finished for her as she stood and picked up the box. "I suggest you be more aware of your surroundings, otherwise, you're going to get seriously hurt one of these days."  
"Look, I said I was sorry." Clarke's eyes narrowed, "Normal people would say 'thank you' or 'apology accepted'. You don't have to be rude."  
"Fine." Lexa stepped into the blonde's space as much as the box in her hands would allow her to, "Apology accepted. Thank you."  
"You're welcome." Clarke replied, refusing to back down from the intense look Lexa was giving her.  
Both remained in place until a shrill whistle came from behind Clarke, where they turned to see Anya standing in the doorway, "These kids are getting antsy for some real music and I need that box."  
"Coming." Lexa replied stepping around the blonde who looked after her.  
"You're a deejay?" Clarke asked after finally finding her voice.  
"No." Lexa stopped and turned to look at her, "Anya is, I'm just here to help with the equipment."  
"And doing a shitty job of it too." Anya said grinning at the brunette as she was handed the box. "Good thing this is voluntary and I'm not paying you."  
"It's a good thing I know where you sleep at night." Lexa sassed back shoving the box more into the dirty blonde's hands, causing her to stumble slightly back into the gym.  
Clarke shook her head and walked a few feet away, looking back to her phone and texting her mother. She looked up as she was honked at and rolled her eyes as Lexa sat in a truck gesturing for her to move.  
She stepped aside allowing the brunette to back up, she noticed the passenger window down and shouted, "You could've been polite and asked nicely."  
"I did! You were too busy with your nose glued to your phone to realize it!" Lexa replied back before backing away completely and going to park the truck in an actual parking spot.  
Clarke glared at the retreating brunette and grumbled, "I swear that girl has got an attitude problem!" Slipping her phone back into her pocket, she walked back into the gym to join her friends once more.  
…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: If you enjoyed this update, please don’t hesitate to show me some love with Likes/Kudos/Comments! Feedback is always appreciated by us writers who slave away to provide entertainment for you all! Til next time! RK out!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: DOUBLE UPDATE! After a conversation with my lovely Beta, TGF (show her some love will ya? She works just as hard correcting my errors), we determined this chapter was perfect all on its own and to post without changes! So Enjoy! ~RK

…  
September breezed by and the Griffins became accustomed to living in Arkadia. While Abby adjusted to work at the hospital, Clarke was beginning to like the group of friends she hung out with. Raven made it a point to always offer her a ride in the mornings until after two weeks of asking, it just became a thing they did. They'd meet up at one or the other's house, finish getting ready for school and then they'd hop into Raven's car and go. So when on an October Saturday Raven showed up at Clarke's bedroom door, it didn't surprise the blonde whatsoever.  
"Hey, Rae!" Clarke smiled at her friend and put her sketch pad down.  
"Griffindor!" Raven grinned back at her walking in and plopping down on the bed. "What say you and I go for a drive and do something fun, today?"  
"Like?" Clarke sat up more. "It doesn't involve heights again does it?"  
Raven started laughing and shook her head, "You said yourself you liked that hike!"  
"Yeah, after we were done and I wasn't standing on a ledge!" Clarke rolled her eyes hitting her friend with a pillow. "That wind was terrible and we about got ourselves blown off the damn side! All because you wanted to show me the city!" She wasn't too mad, the hike did give her a fantastic view of Arkadia and she was able to put it on canvas once she got home afterwards.  
"Ok, so let's go! I already talked to Mrs. G and she's totally ok with it." Raven said as she stood up and took Clarke's hand to help her up as well. "Grab a jacket, it might get chilly later."  
"Don't tell me what to do."  
"Child, you better listen to me!"  
"You're not my real Mom!"  
A hand reached into her closet and pulled out her black hoodie, draping it over her arm as they made their way down the stairs laughing.  
"Bye, Mom!" Clarke waved at her mother as they passed the kitchen.  
"Yeah, see ya, Mrs. G!" Raven waved as well.  
"Bye girls! Have fun!" Abby called after them, watching as the two started down the front porch steps, pushing and shoving at the other as they made their way to the Honda Accord sitting in Raven's driveway.  
They stopped at a store along the way and grabbed a basket full of munchies before heading off once more. Raven still refused to tell Clarke where they were going, so after the tenth time of asking the blonde quit and just rode along. Her eyes widened though when they crept closer to the harbor, more specifically to the side road that would lead them to the docks.  
"We're going on a boat?" She bounced excitedly in her seat. "I love boats!"  
"Yeah." Raven nodded, parking in an available spot and pointing towards the boat they'd be boarding. "That's the one we're going on."  
"Badass!" Clarke jumped out and grabbed a couple bags before pausing when she noticed movement on the boat Raven had pointed out and recognized Anya waving them over. "What's she doing here?"  
Raven started walking towards the dirty blonde woman, "Uhm, it's her boat and she's taking us out in it?"  
"Was that a question or a statement?" Clarke huffed in annoyance. "Is Lexa going to be here too?"  
"I don't know." Shoulders shrugged in response, the blonde quickly realized she was fighting a losing battle when it was apparent her friend only had eyes for the woman on board.  
In the weeks since the Welcome Back dance, Clarke had run into Lexa twice. Thankfully both times did not end up with either of them on their asses. One time was at the grocery store when Clarke ran in to grab something for her mom and Lexa was walking out. They'd barely acknowledged each other at that point, which made Clarke happy as she was having a bad day and she didn't want to deal with any possible attitude.  
The second time was at the local library. Finding the book she'd been looking forward to reading for months, Clarke pulled it off the shelf at the same time the book across from it was removed and she was staring into those familiar green eyes. Clarke had nicely said 'Hello' only to receive a curt nod before the brunette disappeared.  
"Hello, gorgeous." Anya winked at Raven and then looked to the blonde standing there uneasily, "Hello, we haven't formally met. I'm Anya."  
"Clarke." Clarke replied handing the woman her bags after Raven had done so.  
"Ready to set out?" Anya asked smiling at the darker girl. "I figure we'd get out of the harbor so we can really get a feel for the water."  
"Sounds perfect to me." Raven grinned accepting the hand that she was offered and jumping on. She turned to her friend who did the same. "You'll have fun, I promise."  
"Better." Clarke grumbled as she steadied her legs once on board and went to sit in one of the seats off to the side.  
She paid little attention to the other two talking. A smile crept over her lips when the engine was fired up and they were let loose of the dock to wade out into the harbors water. Her eyes scanned everything they could look upon as they moved smoothly through the gentle waves. Raven joined her and started pointing out the bigger landmarks and places of importance to her as they started gaining speed, making their way closer to open waters.  
"Well, what do you think?" Raven asked as she sat back in her seat once she was done explaining the area to her friend. "Think you'll stay here awhile?"  
"I just might." Clarke nodded, "I really haven't any set plans for after high school, and this place is beautiful."  
"It really is." Raven looked back to the boats operator. "How far out are we going?"  
"Not too much farther." Anya called back smiling as she looked at them, "Get comfy we have a little bit until we're there."  
…  
"There's no way!" Raven laughed shoving Anya in the arm, "I don't believe you!"  
Clarke rolled her eyes at her friends blatant flirting and took a sip of the lemonade she'd brought along with her. "I highly doubt she's lying, Rae."  
"Never know, will you?" Anya grinned winking at Raven before turning to Clarke, "So, you're what? Seventeen? Eighteen?"  
"Seventeen, but my birthday is coming up in a few weeks." Clarke said smiling. She was looking forward to it as her mother had stated she had plans for them and was making a big deal out of it this year.  
"Oh, so that means you're-" Anya began.  
"Did we have any more of those snack bars in the bag?" Raven interrupted her leaning across the dirty blonde on purpose.  
"I think so. Let me grab it." Anya said placing her hand on the small of Raven's back as she reached down to grab the bag in question.  
"I'm going to go sit at the back of the boat." Clarke said standing up, not able to watch the two of them flirt any longer.  
"Stern." Anya said smiling at her.  
"Right." Clarke smiled back and grabbed a bag of chips, another lemonade and the notepad she'd purchased and made her way to the stern.  
The boat she noticed was quite large and definitely made for comfort. She sat on one of the plush leather cushions, propping her feet up. Her eyes taking in the horizon, enjoying the clear blue sky, and how calm the water seemed as it lapped lazily at the sides of the boat making, it sway back and forth. She'd gotten used to the bobbing within minutes and smiled at the memory of the time her father had taken her out on what would be their last boating trip together that ended with him getting seasick.  
She felt a soft wind carry over her shoulders causing an involuntary shiver. With the sun out it would be too warm for her to put her hoodie on so she opted to keep it beside her just in case. Blue eyes drifted to her lap and they widened as this whole time her hands had been sketching. The image of her father was slowly coming to life and she had to stifle the impending feelings threatening to burst from within. Swallowing hard she continued to concentrate on the portrait. While it certainly wasn't big, it was still worth putting in a frame later on when she returned to her house.  
Hearing a squealing noise coming from the two up front, she paused and shook her head as she heard feet pounding across the deck to the cabin door that led below deck. Sighing, she was inwardly thankful that she was left alone while those two got up to whatever they were doing. She just hoped it wasn't loud enough for her to hear, because that would be way awkward and she didn't need to know her friend that well.  
"You two are bitches!"  
Hearing the angry shout come from the front made Clarke pause once more and look to where it had come from. She knew that voice and she groaned inwardly when she realized this whole time she'd been aboard the boat, she had no clue that the frustrating green eyed beauty had been below deck.  
Blue eyes watched as Lexa, oblivious to her presence, grumbled something in what sounded like a foreign language and went to sit in the seat Clarke had vacated when she moved to the back of the boat. This also put her in direct line of sight if those green eyes were to look to her right and she waited with baited breath to see if the woman would notice her.  
She took in the woman's profile, her eyes slowly making their way down the exposed tan skin of her savior. Lexa's hair was pulled half up, half down, a lock of brown hair blowing gently in the wind as her head was looking down. She wore a white bikini top that exposed plenty of tanned skin for the blonde to devour with her eyes, white with grey pinstriped pants and white sandals finished the ensemble. Clarke was pretty sure her heart was about to beat right out of her chest within the next moment as her mouth became suddenly dry.  
A book was held firmly in the brunette's hands, green eyes tracing over the pages and never wavering. It was evident that she was quite engrossed in whatever it was, and that the two below deck had interrupted her. Deciding to let her be, as it was obvious that she wouldn't be noticed any time soon, the blonde turned back to her sketch and continued drawing. While it was unnerving that the brunette was on board and with the memory of how she'd treated her since the day at the hospital, Clarke seemed to feel a sense of calm about her usually wayward mind and it was easy to get caught up in her sketch.  
Little did she know, that it had only taken a few minutes for green eyes to spot her and that the brunette had sat looking her up and down much like the blonde had. It wasn't until Lexa's shadow fell across her notepad that Clarke looked up and smiled slightly at the brunette.  
"Anya didn't mention you'd be on board." Lexa said coolly as she took a seat across from Clarke.  
Blue eyes narrowed at the snide remark and she took a breath in to hold her tongue from lashing out, "Funny, Raven didn't tell me where we were going. So, I kind of got suckered into this."  
"Well, you could always swim back to shore." Lexa shrugged as she looked over the side where land was, "It'd be a long swim, but I bet you could make it before nightfall."  
"Seriously?" Clarke snapped throwing her notepad down and glaring at the brunette. "What the hell is wrong with you? I haven't done anything to you, yet you've turned into a bitch since after the fire."  
"You just had to be a Griffin! Fucking spawn of the can-never-do-any-wrong Griffins!" Lexa snapped back at her, a vein on the side of her neck bulging catching Clarke's attention for a split second before she looked back into those fiery green eyes.  
"I don't know what you're talking about!" Clarke sat back in annoyance. It seemed like everyone knew the history of her family but her, "Why don't you go back to your seat up front and leave me be?"  
"This is my family's boat. I can sit wherever I please." The look Lexa gave her dared the blonde to say anything in response. "Maybe you should go."  
"I was here first." Clarke growled but then the sudden realization that the brunette was looking for a fight dawned on her she sighed and slapped her hands to her knees. "You know what? Fine! I'll move."  
"Good."  
Clarke painfully bit her tongue to keep from saying anything else as she gathered her things and started for the bow of the boat. Before she could make it too far she was stopped by the sound of Lexa's voice.  
"Stop." Blue eyes rolled in annoyance and the blonde turned to look at her. "I'll go. I have a better view up front than back here anyway."  
"Of course you'd wait until after I'd picked up my things to decide that." Clarke huffed as Lexa stood and walked closer to her.  
"Enjoy yourself, Griffin." Lexa came in close, close enough to be considered inappropriate and damn if Clarke didn't have the sudden urge to just pull the stubborn woman to her and embrace those kissable lips with her own.  
A smirk appeared over said lips as the brunette caught the brief glance to her mouth that the blonde tried desperately to avoid but failed. Clarke stepped back as Lexa moved forward, the blonde pressed firmly against the rail of the boat.  
"Interesting." Lexa's head tilted to the side before she sighed and a moment later she was sitting back in the spot she'd vacated when she went to go talk to Clarke.  
Letting out a breath she didn't know she held, the blonde clenched her hands into fists in frustration and moved back to her seat as well. Pulling out the notepad, she attempted once more to continue working on her sketch, but the built up anger within her broke her concentration and she growled in frustration as she slammed the notepad down beside her and looked out over the water.  
It would be just her luck to be stuck out in the middle of the ocean, too far from land to swim back, with a woman who obviously detested her existence due to some beef their families had with each other, all the while her slowly becoming best friend was down below deck probably getting her freak on.  
"Could this day get any worse?!" Clarke grumbled as she crossed her arms over her chest.  
"I wouldn't say that." Lexa chuckled having heard the blonde's outburst. "Things tend to do so afterwards, and knowing your track record it's liable to happen!"  
"If I wanted your opinion, I'd ask for it." Clarke hissed back.  
"Ah, but opinions are like assholes. Everyone has one." Lexa quipped.  
"Shut up."  
"Make me."  
"You'd like that too much."  
"Maybe I would, maybe I wouldn't."  
Clarke huffed in frustration, part of her enjoying their banter and the other was downright pissed at the brunette who seemed to be purposefully pushing her buttons. She ignored her last statement and looked out to the horizon once more.  
"You seriously have no idea what I'm referring to, do you?"  
The blonde jumped, startled by Lexa's close proximity to her as she hadn't heard the brunette move. "You'll have to be more specific. You've referred to a lot of things in the last ten minutes."  
"About our families?" Curious eyes looked back at the blonde as if trying to determine if Clarke was lying or speaking the truth.  
"Obviously if I knew, I wouldn't be sitting here confused as hell as to what's going on." Clarke said softly, brushing a blonde lock of hair behind her ear. "I really don't understand what you're talking about."  
Green eyes continued to peer into her blue until at last she must have determined what she wanted to know and she nodded before standing. "I suppose then you should ask your mother when you return home."  
As soon as she was a few feet away, Clarke jumped to her own feet and stepped forward, grabbing a tanned arm and pulling the brunette around to face her. "You can't just walk away and not tell me what the hell is going on!"  
"I can." Lexa brought her hand up and slowly pried the blonde's fingers from her skin. Neither acknowledged the pleasant tingling they felt upon contact with the other. "And I will."  
"Lexa!" Clarke yelled as she followed the brunette to the front of the boat. She tried again to grab her arm, but Lexa turned around with a look of fury upon her face.  
"Don't you touch me, Clarke Griffin!" She hissed causing the blonde to step back slightly. "I don't want to tell you, because I don't want to be the one to crush the pretty picture I'm sure your mother will paint of the history between my family and yours. I don't want to be the one to tell you that you've been lied to your whole childhood and your precious father wasn't such a great guy."  
Clarke felt the anger bubbling within her and her fingers clenched again. She stepped closer to the brunette who side stepped her and they circled one another. "Don't you dare talk about my father!"  
"Or what?" Lexa laughed. "Your Dad was a fraud! He slept around with many women while married to your mother. I know this because one of those women happened to be my Mother!"  
Blue eyes narrowed at the accusations. Her heart thundering within her chest as her body shook slightly from the strength she was using to keep from retaliating physically against Lexa. She wanted to argue and say it all wasn't true, but she didn't know if it was or not. Instead her rage built within and her mind scattered in many directions, trying to determine what to say next or what to do.  
"You can't argue with me about it, 'cause you don't know if it's true or not. Can you?" Lexa said as if reading her mind. "This was a long time ago, of course, and from my understanding that's what pushed your family to eventually move away. Because your father was a coward and couldn't handle the repercussions of his actions."  
Upon hearing the slander against her father, the inner strength she was holding together snapped and she lunged forward to strike the brunette. "I said don't talk about my father!"  
Lexa easily blocked the attempted strike and shoved the blonde back away from her, "It's true! You can ask your Mother, but I'm sure she's going to tell you something different! All to protect her precious husband's name!"  
Clarke growled and lunged again, her hand pulling back and launching forward connecting surprisingly with a strong jaw bone, causing Lexa's head to turn to the side when she was too slow to block the move. Neither noticed the sudden formation of the dark clouds that rolled in, nor the stronger wind whipping around them. The boat now bobbing harder up and down with the rough waves, and rain began to pour down upon them.  
Green eyes connected with blue as Lexa held her jaw. Both breathed heavily as they stood toe to toe until Clarke saw the brunette's hand move back. She ducked, expecting a blow to the face in retaliation to what she'd done, but instead she felt a force push her backwards.  
As she slid back, she felt nothing but air. At the same moment she'd been forced backwards, the bow of the boat had dipped low, causing her to stumble, slipping on the wet surface and over the side rail. For the brief moment she was airborne, her arms flailed about trying to grasp for anything that would catch her, but came up empty and she hit the cold saltwater.  
"CLARKE!"  
Kicking her legs to get to the surface, her head broke through to gasp for air, her eyes seeking the boat and seeing that Raven and Anya had reappeared from below deck and were running to where Lexa stood. Trying not to panic she waved her arm at them but she didn't see the wave coming from behind her, and once more she was forced under by its weight.  
Her heart started pounding faster as she felt her body being pulled further down and away from the boat. Her arms felt useless as she tried moving them through the water, lungs burning from holding her breath. Small amounts of air escaped her lips in bubbles and she felt like she was sinking rather than floating up.  
Somehow she managed to break to the top gasping for air and willing her body to stay afloat. However, the waves were still too much for her to overcome and she found herself going under again. This time, she could feel her body giving up as it had no more fight left in it to get her back to the top. Her body moved with the motion of the water and as her lungs began to burn again from lack of oxygen, she went completely limp.  
As she began to see white dots beneath her eyelids, she felt a strong pair of arms wrap around her torso and pull her up. Unable to kick or move, she felt useless in helping and willed her rescuer to just let her go so they didn't fall to the ill fate she'd resigned herself too. She'd be wrong in thinking so, as their heads broke through the surface once more and she coughed and sputtered, her lungs filling desperately with the air they needed.  
"I've got you. I've got you."  
Her heart leapt at the sound of Lexa's voice in her ear. While she should have been pissed at the brunette, she found it very hard at the moment as she was thankful just to be breathing in air and not water. With one strong arm around her, she felt the brunette start to kick and move her free arm through the water to get back to the boat. She saw Anya throw out a rescue ring once they were close and Lexa moved to put it around Clarke. Placing tanned hands on the side of the ring, she pushed it from behind, kicking her legs rapidly to get them around to the stern where a small deck sat with a ladder that would take them up.  
Blue eyes remained shut as Clarke attempted to slow her rapidly beating heart and draw in much needed air. As she calmed, she became aware of her surroundings and that the water seemed to be calming as well. She felt two pairs of hands hook under each arm as she was lifted onto the deck that sat an inch under the water, while Lexa moved her own hands to the blonde's legs to assist from the water.  
Lying on the deck, she breathed in and out, happy to be on something solid. She heard Lexa hop up next to her, and felt her check her over for any injuries.  
"Let's get her on deck." She heard Anya say. "We've got blankets below deck to help warm you up."  
"Clarke? Can you stand?" Raven asked worriedly at the lack of response from the blonde.  
Clarke shook her head slightly. She didn't trust herself to get her up that ladder without falling back into the water again. So, she let Raven and Anya help her to her feet, Lexa jumping up the ladder to help pull her up. Clarke accepted the brunettes help and once on the actual boat, she found herself in the arms of the woman who seemed to be her constant savior.  
"Sshhh…I got you." Lexa whispered in her ear as tanned thumbs brushed at the tears that trekked down her cheeks. She didn't know when she started crying, but the sudden tightness within her chest caused her to shake uncontrollably as she sobbed into Lexa's neck.  
"Go get the blankets!" Lexa ordered as she felt the blonde's shivering intensify.  
"On it!" Anya moved quickly to go below deck as Lexa slowly guided the blonde to sit, only to be pulled down with her as they sat beside Raven.  
"I'm sorry." A wavering voice whispered for only the blonde to hear and Clarke could have sworn she felt lips press gently against her temple. "I'm so sorry."  
"Here." Anya said as she returned with an armful.  
Her hoodie was placed over her arms and Clarke allowed them to wrap her up in a blanket immediately returning to the security of Lexa's embrace as the brunette wrapped another around them both. She vaguely heard Anya state that she would get them going back to shore and Raven offer to help pull up the anchor. All she knew is that as frustrating as the woman holding her was, she couldn't help the calmness that overcame her while being in her presence.  
Her mind replayed the whole event over and over. Eyebrows furrowed when she realized that when Lexa had pulled her hand back and Clarke ducked, the brunette hadn't actually touched her to push her back. The tanned hand came up short of doing so by a couple inches, yet she was forced back just the same. Not to mention the force she'd felt was as if Lexa had used both hands, but she distinctly remembered her holding her jaw and only using one arm.  
Green eyes widened as the blonde suddenly shot up and looked at her in confusion.  
"What the hell just happened?" Clarke asked as she moved slightly away from Lexa. "You didn't touch me, but I went overboard!"  
"You don't know?" It was Lexa's turn to look at her in confusion.  
“Know what?" Clarke felt her heart beating faster again. She was getting really tired of feeling like she was the butt-end of a joke everyone was aware of but her.  
"How can you not know?" Anya asked as she'd come to check on them one last time before getting the engine fired up.  
"Guys! Don't!" Raven interrupted the brunette before Lexa could say anything.  
"Seriously?" Clarke's eyes moved from one girl to the next until she was looking at Lexa again. "What are you guys not telling me?"  
Green eyes softened as Lexa placed her hand over the blonde's, "You're a witch, Clarke."  
"Excuse me?" Clarke looked to Raven, positive that her friend would stick up for her, but Raven was standing there with a guilty look upon her face and eventually nodded.  
"It's true." The darker girl said softly.  
"I'm not a bitch!" Clarke cried out causing the others to start laughing, "Seriously, guys, this shit isn't funny!"  
"Yes," Lexa said squeezing her hand and wiping a tear with her other hand, "It is. We said ‘witch’ not bitch."  
“We’re all witches.” Anya said causing confused blue eyes to look in her direction.  
Raven lifted her arms and mimicked a pointy hat and made a whooshing sound, "You know, with the hat and cauldron and broomsticks?"  
"Shit."  
The last thing Clarke remembered was her hearing going fuzzy, and pure blackness overcoming her. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head as her body fell limp into the brunette in front of her who had instantly wrapped her arms around the blonde to keep her from falling to the deck floor and injuring herself.  
"Well, that was fun!" Anya clapped her hands and turned to start the engine up and head back towards the docks.  
…


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: For your entertainment here's a chat TGF and I had months ago:
> 
> .
> 
> TGF: You writing? lol
> 
> RK: Nope, I wanted to, But then I didn't want to, I wanted to, But then I decided seeing Lexa again was more important than my fanfic
> 
> TGF: Are you watching it?
> 
> RK: No I'm already done lol
> 
> TGF: So you rewatched the Clexa of the Finale? It was literally 4minutes
> 
> RK: Don't judge me! LMAO
> 
> .
> 
> Seriously, I hated that Finale more than anything based off of so many things that I could rant for days about BUT I will refrain from doing so. Here is Chapter 4! Read on! ~RhydianKnight

…

"Clarke? Sweetheart, can you hear me?"

"Come on, Griffindor, nap time's over!"

Her head was in a fog. The voices around her seemed so far away, but as she focused on them, they began to get clearer.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, seriously."

Why were they trying to wake her up? Oh, right, she'd passed out on the boat after finding out she was a witch.

"Clarke, open your eyes."

"Hey look! Lexa's here in a bikini!"

Behind closed eyelids, blue eyes rolled at her friend's comment. She waited for the reprimand and wasn't disappointed when it soon followed.

"Raven!"

"Sorry, not sorry."

Deciding she'd had enough of hearing the two bickering over her, Clarke's eyes opened and she groaned when she caught sight of her mother's concerned face hovering above her and Raven's cheeky grin on the other side.

"Ha! My way worked!"

"Shut up, Rae." The blonde grumbled as she moved to sit up on the couch. Wait, couch? "How the hell did I get home?"

"I drove you." Raven gave her a 'Duh!' look. "And believe me, it wasn't easy moving you from the boat to the car. You might want to lay off the sweets for a bit." She patted Clarke's stomach, "Just sayin'."

"Rae!"

"Raven!"

The brunette laughed at the Griffin women's outburst and stood up from leaning over the back of the couch, "I'll be just outside if anyone needs me!"

Clarke shook her head as she watched her friend disappear and looked to her mother, "So, is it true?" A frown appeared on her mother's face instantaneously and her eyes fell to the floor. "It is, isn't it?" Clarke shook her head in disbelief. She didn't know which was worse, finding out who she was or being lied to her entire life.

"It is." Abby barely got the words out of her mouth before she was nearly knocked over by the force of Clarke jumping up off the couch.

"I can't believe this!" The blonde turned to her mother, the hurt evident upon her face, "Why lie about it? How could you keep this from me?"

"Your father-" Abby began as she too stood up, but was interrupted.

"Did he sleep with Lexa's mom? And the others?" Clarke asked crossing her arms. "Is that why we moved?"

"Clarke, it's complicated."

"So uncomplicated it! I want to know the truth!"

Clarke was visibly shaking; her heart was racing, her breaths coming in fast bursts. She knew she was on the verge of hyperventilating and needed to calm down but now that the truth was out there she needed the confirmation from her mother before she could put her mind to rest and move forward.

Abby sighed and leaned against the armrest of the couch, "We left for many reasons," she nodded her head and there it was, Clarke knew she had her answer, "But yes. One of the reasons was your father's infidelity."

She felt like she'd been punched in the gut. She thought hearing the words would make her feel better but now she stood having heard them and she couldn't think of a single thing to say. Her stomach dropped, her heart pounded away, she felt heavy.

"Your father was a good man-"

"Who cheated on his wife!" She was still shaking, but now it was out of anger.

"Clarke, you need to calm down." Abby said in an even voice, seeing that the blonde's cheeks had started to turn pink. "Right now, your magic isn't controlled and is at its strongest when you're emotional."

"Why now?" Blue eyes filled with tears as her hands balled into fists, "Why is this all of a sudden showing up when we moved here and not before?"

"I can explain but right now, you need to calm down."

"Don't tell me to calm down!" Clarke yelled.

Abby took a step back as she watched her daughter's eyes turn to blue flames.

A glass Clarke hadn't noticed before that was sitting on the coffee table shattered, staining the table and spilling onto the floor.

"Clarke!" Abby yelled taking a step forward and reaching out to her daughter.

"I can't do this!"

She bolted. Running through the house to the front door, she flung it open and leapt over the three small porch steps.

"Clarke!"

Hearing Raven's voice, she rounded and stopped at the end of the sidewalk nearly making the brunette run into her. "You!"

"Me?" Dark eyes looked at her in confusion.

"How could you not tell me?" Clarke shoved her away, "You're supposed to be my friend!"

"I thought you knew!" Raven sighed, "I only figured out you didn't when Harper messed with your car."

"Harper messed with our car?" Clarke's eyes narrowed again. Raven took a step back as she noticed the blue flames within her friend's eyes.

"I tried stopping her after I realized what she was doing when she followed you to the window of the Boat House!" Raven held her hands up in defense. "I swear I didn't know the car was going to catch fire!"

"Why was Harper trying to hurt me?" Clarke all but hissed.

"She was testing you." Raven turned slightly; ready to duck at any given moment. "Look, we can talk about this but you need to calm down."

"Everyone needs to stop telling me to calm down!" Clarke yelled her fists balling again as she resisted the urge to lash out at the girl in front of her.

The sound of the nearest streetlamps bursting, sparks and glass falling to the ground, caused both girls to duck and cover their heads. With the sudden darkness enveloping them, Clarke began to panic. She was confused and scared. Shit was breaking and shattering and she didn't know how to control this…this…whatever this was. But every time she was told to calm down, it immediately pissed her off.

"Clarke?" Raven reached out for her, concern written over her face.

"Don't!" More shattered streetlamps, this time further down the street. Clarke grabbed at the sides of her head, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Make it stop!"

She fell to her knees, curling into a ball as she continued to shake uncontrollably. Her ears rang, her heart pounding loudly in her chest, her vision slowly tunneling. She didn't hear the motorcycles pull up or the shouts from Raven, Abby, and the newcomers. All she knew was when a pair of strong familiar arms wrapped around her, she immediately began to start feeling a sense of relief.

Her hearing picked up that familiar voice, whispering soothing words to her, although she couldn't make any out. Her head was too clouded and she concentrated on that voice. There was something about it that just clicked within the very depths of her, no matter how much she didn't want to succumb to it. Focusing on that voice alone, she started feeling lighter. Once the fog cleared, she felt her heart calm and could hear everything around her once more.

"There you are." Lexa's gentle voice in her ear made her sigh. She became aware of the fingers running through her hair and as much as she wanted to pull away, she feared another episode more. So she decided to stay right where she was. "How long has she been like this?"

"She just barely woke up fifteen minutes ago." Raven replied, her voice laced with worry for her friend. "I left her to talk to Mrs. G, heard shouting, glass breaking and a second later Clarke was bolting out the door."

"Did she do this?" An unfamiliar female voice to Clarke asked. She must have gotten her answer because she added, "Impressive."

"Not now, Octavia." Lexa hissed over her shoulder.

"You can step away from my daughter now." Abby said in a warning tone.

Clarke instinctively gripped the shirt in front of her harder. She didn't trust herself to be released just yet and at the moment if being held by the woman she barely knew, who had also turned her world upside down helped, then she'd be damned if she'd let her go willingly and risk another episode. Apparently, the brunette picked up on her unspoken signal as the hold around her tightened slightly before she spoke.

"That's not happening any time soon, Griffin."

"I said step away from my daughter, Alexandria!"

"Mrs. G, I think she has a point." Raven's voice intervened quickly. "Once Lexa showed up, Clarke calmed down. Let her be another minute."

"Thank you, but I can handle my daughter." Clarke felt a hand touch her back and she flinched away, "Clarke, sweetheart, let's go inside."

"She doesn't want to move!" The body holding the blonde shifted and the hand on the blonde's back was removed immediately. "Leave her alone!"

"Abby she's gripping Lexa's shirt-" Raven tried interfering.

"How dare you!"

"STOP!" Clarke yelled, finally trusting her voice and was quick to move to her feet once more. "All of you! Just stop!"

"Sweetheart-" Abby began again.

"No! I'm done! I need to be alone right now." Everyone saw the blue flames flickered within her eyes and no one interrupted or tried to say otherwise. Looking to her mother she narrowed her eyes, "You've lied to me my entire life! My father turns out to be the biggest player in Arkadia and I had to find out from the child of one of the women he slept with just what I am and what he did!"

"Clarke, if you'd let me explain." Abby looked back at her daughter stubbornly.

"Not right now." Clarke shook her head. She looked to Raven, "You should have told me when Harper did that. I could have died if Lexa hadn't gotten me out!"

"I'm sorry." At least her friend had the nerve to look guilty for her actions.

Her eyes found green and the small flames within them slowly built stronger, "And you! You nearly killed me pushing me off that boat! Then you have the nerve after rescuing me to ruin my life."

"It wasn't done on purpose!" Lexa stood straighter her own eyes narrowing. "I said I didn't want to be the one to tell you!"

"Yet you didn't hesitate to do just that." Clarke snapped back.

"Ooooh, this one has bite. I like her." The unfamiliar voice caused Clarke to spin around to see its owner behind her. The woman was slightly shorter than the blonde. Her brunette hair was braided back, falling down just past her shoulders. She wore a leather outfit perfect for riding the motorcycle she was leaning against. The smirk upon her lips and the way her eyes were dancing with mirth caused Clarke to smile slightly for a moment. This woman was trouble.

Schooling her face, she shook her head. "And just who the hell are you?"

"Octavia." A hand was extended out to which Clarke ignored. "I'm a big fan of your work."

"I said not now, O!" Lexa hissed before Clarke could question what she meant.

Bringing her attention back around, the blonde looked between the three women in front of her. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but closed it. This continued two more times, each time it shut just as quickly as it opened as she started to feel the building anger within her grow. Instead she turned on her heel and started down the sidewalk.

A chorus of voices preceded her and she ignored every one of them. Her mind was running a mile a minute and being around the reason for it, didn't help. She hurried her pace, turning corners every so often not knowing where she was headed. She had no destination in mind at all; she just knew she had to get away. She ended up at a playground at a park across town before she stopped and sat down on a swing.

She was confused, but then again that would be putting it lightly. Confused wouldn't even amount to the emotions coursing through her at the moment. Anger, betrayal, hurt, sadness. She was having a hard time figuring out one before being forced into another, the whiplash effect, causing her head to hurt.

Her phone rang so she pulled it from her pocket and ignored the phone call from her mother. She changed the settings within her phone under her mother's contact name to make the phone immediately send any further calls straight to voicemail. It didn't take long before another familiar face popped up on her phone and she repeated the same steps for Raven's number.

Hearing footsteps, she looked up to find the smiling face of Finn walking towards her. She rolled her eyes and put her phone back in her pocket as he stopped in front of her.

"What brings you out here at this time of night?" He asked.

Clarke sighed as she didn't even realize that it had started to get late. Hell, she hadn't even had the chance to look at the time closely since everything started. "Just needed to get away."

"Would you like some company?"

Clarke opened her mouth to decline, but ended up nodding instead and watched as he took a seat on the swing beside her. "What are you doing out?"

"I live around the corner." Finn pointed in the general direction. "I was walking back from Monty's when I saw you and thought I'd stop to say hello."

"That was kind of you." Clarke smiled slightly his good mood cheering her up slightly. "I've had a pretty shitty day."

"No kidding? How bad?"

"Let's see," She lifted her hands in front of her and counted off the wrongs, "I got talked into going on a boat belonging to someone I really didn't want to run into. Come to find out that someone was on said boat but I didn't find out until we were out on the water. Said person and I got into an argument about my father who also turns out to have been an adulterer, resulting in me nearly dying in the ocean when I was pushed backwards."

"She rescued me but then I find out from her that I'm actually a witch!" By now she's totally zoned into her storytelling and not paying attention to the fact that Finn stopped swinging and was looking at her. When she did notice, she stopped talking and turned to face him before finishing, "I pass out, wake up at home to my mother and friend hovering over me. My mother confirms the allegations against my father and that I'm a witch. I get pissed, shit breaks, and I run."

"So you run to a kids' playground?" Finn asked appearing amused.

"Oh, no. That was after I blew out every streetlamp on the street when Raven tried to stop me and informed me that Harper is the reason my car caught fire." Clarke crossed her arms, "But you know, that's just a mediocre shitty day."

"Mediocre?" Finn barked out laughing. "I still can't believe you didn't know you were a witch!"

"You knew?" Clarke's eyes narrowed before she growled in frustration. "Why is it everyone knew about this but me?"

"Uhm, I don't know." Finn shrugged. "I mean, only witches can reside in Arkadia."

"What?" Clarke grabbed his arm. "What does that mean?"

"Wow, you're really in the dark aren't you?" He placed his hand over hers. "There's a protection spell surrounding Arkadia. Only witches can come and go."

"Kind of like Storybrooke on Once Upon a Time?"

"Something like that."

"Ugh! I feel so clueless!"

"You won't be for long. Come on, I know just the place for you to get distracted. What do you say?" He stood from his seat on the swing and offered a hand to the blonde who looked at it before looking into his soft brown eyes.

After a minute of contemplation, Clarke nodded in agreement and allowed him to help her up before they started walking in the direction Finn had come from.

As it turned out, Monty was holding a small party at his house that was still going steady when the two arrived. Clarke was hesitant at first to join the others as they drank the mysterious liquor concoction Monty had made but eventually succumbed to the peer pressure to try it. Surprisingly it tasted fruity and only burned slightly as it went down her throat.

She became engrossed in the competitive game of beer pong going on between Monty and Jasper, not once questioning the cup in her hand that seemed to always be full of the delicious drink Monty provided. Because of this, she progressively became more and more intoxicated, which lowered her guard and she found herself actually flirting back with Finn who hadn't left her side the whole time they were there.

He wasn't that bad at all, and had his moments, but he was still charming. He had a cute smile and his stupid jokes made her laugh. Wanting to have a good time, she joined in the conversation around her and got to know the other partygoers. It was simple and laid back, something she needed with the whirlwind of emotions inside of her. She stopped sipping at her cup when she felt thoroughly buzzed, not wanting to get completely drunk in an unknown home with people she barely knew.

Later in the night, as things were winding down, she agreed to follow Finn upstairs when he asked. Thoughts of the day's events were far from her mind as she allowed herself to be led to a vacant room where she completely lost herself in Finn's touch. For a moment the fleeting image of a different brunette with green eyes went through her mind just before she allowed her lips to be captured by his. An image that was quickly replaced with nothingness as lust flood through her body and heat scorched her veins as she was pressed down onto the bed. Her last coherent thought before falling into the abyss was that Finn had been right when he said she would be distracted.

…

"So, let me get this straight." Clarke placed a fry in her mouth and after picking up the next one pointed it at Finn who sat beside her, "I'm able to do this magic stuff 'cause my birthday is around the corner and once I'm eighteen after some kind of party get together thing, I get all my powers?"

It was the early hours of the morning, Arkadia had only one fast food place that stayed open twenty-four hours, that served the greasy food Clarke had been craving after they had left Monty's house. Her mind had cleared some from her slight inebriated fog and she decided instead of making things awkward after what happened in the room, she would look past it and move on. It wasn't her first time and she had to admit she could have chosen worse than Finn to sleep with to forget about her troubles. Even as brief as it was.

They'd agreed afterwards that it was a one-time thing and not to speak of it to anyone. Raven being the big reason as Clarke didn't want to lose the only friend she seemed to have made so far being in Arkadia.

"Ascension Ceremony." He corrected her bringing her back to the present, "And yes. You decide at that point if you'll be Light or Dark."

"And you are?" Clarke picked up her burger and took a bite.

"Light." He took a sip from his drink. "Everyone we hang out with is Light."

Clarke nodded her understanding and then tilted her head to the side, "What about Lexa?"

The fry headed for his mouth paused before he looked at her solemnly, "She's Dark."

"Oh." Clarke looked down at her food, her eyebrows furrowing as she thought about all the information she'd been given so far. "So, with the Light and Dark, there's no wars on the streets here?"

"We all follow the rules of the Elders." Finn spun a fry around in a circle. It was obvious that he'd heard the history over and over by his actions, "No fighting the other side out in the open, take grievances to the Elders, both Light and Dark Elders convene, any fights determined worthy of battle end up in the arena. Blah, blah blah."

"Hey, don't you 'blah, blah, blah'! I'm still learning about all this shit." Clarke threw a fry at him and laughed when he ducked and caught it in his mouth. "Show off."

"I have other things I could show off about." He winked and scooted closer to her.

"Ugh!" Clarke feigned gagging and leaned away from him. "And there's the asshole everyone warned me about. Too bad, you were doing so good!"

"I was, wasn't I?" A cocky grin appeared upon his lips as he sat up straighter. "Damn, I'm good!"

"Oh, whatever!" Clarke shoved him away.

"Admit it!" He grabbed his drink to take a sip but before the blonde could reply to his comment, he was spraying the dark substance all over the table. "What the hell?"

Upon seeing her food now ruined, blue eyes turned to glare at him. "Seriously, Finn?"

Sorry!" He opened the top of his cup and shook his head. "This tastes like shit."

"So go dump it out and get something else." Clarke shook her head taking her napkin and cleaning up her cup that had been sprayed.

"You don't believe me? Then you try it!" He gave her his cup and she looked at him skeptically.

It looked like regular soda. She sniffed it and rolled her eyes as all she smelled was the sticky sweet aroma of it, "Dude, its soda."

"Try it!" He urged her to take the cup once more.

"Alright." She took it and bypassing the straw he'd used, cautiously took a sip from the side. She made a disgusted face and looked at him as she swished the liquid in her mouth to the other side. Unable to keep up the act, she rolled her eyes again and swallowed the carbonated drink, "Its soda." She repeated.

"What? No!" He took the cup back and the blonde gestured with her hands and gave him a 'have at it' look. He took a sip and once more he was spitting the contents across the table. "Goddammit!"

"Ok, I'm done." Clarke stood up, tired of his charade. "I'm going to head home."

"No! Please!" Finn grabbed her arm and they both jumped back at the electric shock that ran from the contact site. "Ouch!"

"Finn!" Clarke glared at him. "Knock it off!"

"It's not me!" Finn shook his head in disbelief as she started to turn away again, "Clarke, please wait!"

Again he grabbed her, again they felt an electric shock at the contact, only this time, Clarke turned sideways to face him and brought her fist hard against his face. "Don't touch me!"

"Ow!" His hand immediately released her arm and she turned to walk away.

Hearing laughing coming from a table across the room, her eyes lifted to find a familiar pair of green looking back at her. Now how the hell did she manage to not notice Lexa sitting over there? She saw the shorter brunette, Octavia, laughing at something and then looking back over at Finn before her eyes tracked to where Clarke stood. Blue eyes narrowed and instead of walking out, she stomped over to the table the two were sitting at.

"Was this your idea of a joke?" She asked angrily, her eyes boring into green. "What the hell are you doing here? Following me?"

"Not at all." Lexa shook her head and shrugged, "We were actually here before you and whatever his name is showed up. I'm surprised you didn't notice."

"Yeah, kind of hard to miss our bikes out front." Octavia added taking a sip of her drink.

Clarke huffed and looked at Lexa again, "Stop following me!"

Lexa stood up, standing face to face with the blonde, neither refusing to back down from the other, "It's a small city, Clarke."

Blue eyes flickered and the blonde tried really hard to ignore her stomach flipping at the sound of her name from those lips. Damn it, what was with this girl and causing her to want to cave to her every whim? She breathed in raggedly her nostrils flaring as she picked up the brunette's scent when she brushed past her. If she had a favorite scent before now, the intoxicating one of Lexa surely topped it. She watched as Octavia stood to leave as well. They went to the register to pay for their meal as Clarke looked after them.

"Clarke? Will you please listen to me?" Finn's voice beside her broke her of her trance-like state and she turned her head to see that he was indeed standing beside her and very close indeed.

"Get away from me, Finn!" Clarke growled pushing him away.

"Seriously? I'm trying to talk to you!" His eyes narrowed as he reached out to grab her.

Before the blonde could react however, a hand wrapped around his and twisted it around until his arm went behind his back and he was pressed into the table the two brunettes had just vacated.

"She said get away from her." Lexa hissed at him pressing her weight into him, effectively pinning him down. "Don't make her tell you again. You'll walk out of here with more than just that shiner she gave you."

"Fucking Dark witch! Get off me!" Finn pushed back trying to attempt to break the hold but it was apparent he wasn't moving anywhere unless the smaller brunette deemed it so.

Clarke looked around. The burger joint was already nearly empty and the few people currently sitting in their seats were watching the scene unfold intently. She didn't know who was Light and who was Dark, but knew its possible some of both sides were there. One of the employees she noticed stood off to the side, looking unsure of what to do. Whether to get involve and stop the possible fight or just let them be.

Turning, she decided it was best just to walk away. She'd had enough for one day and getting in the middle and prolonging the fight with either Finn or Lexa, would only make her already growing headache worse. She'd barely gotten two blocks before a lone motorcycle zoomed past her and down a ways, pulling over and shutting off. She groaned when she watched Lexa pull off her helmet and stand, leaning against the bike waiting as Clarke slowly made her way towards her.

"You don't listen very well." She snapped in annoyance as she got within ear shot. She kept walking, but as she met up with the brunette the woman just started walking with her.

"No, I don't." Lexa admitted. "And believe me, I know it drives everyone crazy."

"Why are you following me now?" Clarke asked as she looked back behind them and forward, checking for cars as she decided to cross the street.

"Because, despite her majesty's wishes," Lexa smile slightly when blue eyes rolled, "I wanted to make sure you were ok."

"I'm anything but fine." Clarke came to a stop after they'd crossed the street and had walked half a block away from where Lexa had parked. "Go home. Go pester someone who wants to be bothered."

"I can do that." Lexa stepped closer to her, their noses almost touching with the new proximity, "But deep down you don't want me to."

"You almost killed me!" Clarke shoved the brunette away. Hurt filled her eyes with a touch of anger, she was tired of fighting her emotions and let whatever come out, out. "You knew what you were doing, I didn't!"

"It wasn't on purpose!" Green eyes looked at her and Clarke could see the warring emotion within. It looked as if the brunette truly wanted to be angry but she deflated instead after that statement, her green eyes falling to the ground at their feet. "It was just bad timing."

"Bad timing?" Clarke shook her head angrily. "You pushed me off the boat!"

"I didn't know the boat was going to dip! I just wanted you away from me." Lexa shook her head as she looked up at the blonde. "I jumped in after you!"

Before Clarke could respond, she found Lexa invading her space once more and lips pressed against her own. Her eyes shut upon contact as the soft yet firm touch pressed against her own. Her hands dropped to the brunette's waist as if of their own accord and she'd started to lean in when suddenly those lips were gone. Her eyes opened to find a soft gaze peering into her.

"I'm sorry." Lexa whispered breathily, her finger grazing Clarke's cheek to catch the errant tear that slipped from the blonde's eye.

"Why?" Clarke asked willing to keep the tears at bay, but they had a mind of their own and came down freely.

"There's something about you." Lexa wrapped her arms around the blonde who moved willingly into the embrace. It was short lived as the brunette pulled away after the quick hug and kissed the blonde on her cheek. "I'm going to figure out what it is about you that keeps bringing us together. Even if it means arguing with you all the time."

Clarke couldn't help but to smile at that. Damn, this girl was good! How in the hell did she get to her so easily in such a short period of time? Clarke looked after the brunette who'd turned and started walking towards her motorcycle.

"Hey, Woods!" Clarke shouted to her. When Lexa turned around Clarke wrapped her arms around herself, having no jacket on the cold was starting to get to her, "You going to be chivalrous enough to offer me a ride home?"

"Of course, m'Lady!" Lexa bowed in the middle of the street making the blonde laugh. She jogged back to her motorcycle, hopped on after starting it and slowly moved it over to where she'd left Clarke standing.

"Nice ride." Clarke whistled taking a look at the custom paint job over the tank.

"Here." Lexa removed her leather jacket she was wearing and gave it to the blonde. Reaching in the side compartment she opened it to reveal a second helmet and offered it to her as well.

Shrugging on the warm jacket, Clarke nonchalantly breathed into the collar of it. The heady scent of cologne and what she could only assume was Lexa filled her senses and she nearly swooned on the spot, the smell greater on the brunette's clothing than what she'd caught in passing. Her body went lax and she had to place a hand on the brunette's shoulder to catch herself. Lexa smirked, taking the motion for the blonde's known clumsiness.

Helmet on, Clarke swung her leg over the back of the bike and over to the other side, trying to keep some space between her and the brunette but when the woman in front of her caught on to that, she was pulled flush against the strong back in front of her.

"It'll be easier to control the bike with us on it if you aren't so far away." Lexa said before revving the engine.

Clarke's only response was to wrap her arms around the t-shirt clad abdomen in front of her, enjoying the brief moment of feeling the woman's abs beneath her fingers. She tried hard not to lean against the brunette but found herself losing the battle slowly until it was forfeit. Her cheek resting on Lexa's back, she could feel the muscles move with every motion they went through.

The ride was short, having not been too far from the Griffin's neighborhood. Lexa pulled up to the front of her house, killing the engine in the quiet little area. Clarke saw the living room lights were on and window curtains open, the silhouette of her mother moving out of sight after spotting them. A minute later the older Griffin woman was standing on the porch, arms crossed staring them both down.

Clarke placed her hands on Lexa's shoulders, standing tall on the bike before swinging her leg over and stepping down. She stood back and removed her helmet, giving it back to the woman before starting to unzip the jacket. A hand stopped her motions and she looked up confused.

"Keep it." Lexa smiled slightly before schooling her face and leaning away from the blonde. "I'll get it back eventually."

"And when is that going to happen?" Clarke asked as she stepped away from the bike.

"Just keep doing you, Griffin." Lexa shrugged, "I'm sure you'll need saving again soon."

"Hardy har har." The blonde drawled just before the bike was brought back to life. "Thank you."

"Anytime." Lexa winked at her before turning towards the road and taking off.

Hugging the jacket closer to her, Clarke turned and sighed when she spotted her mother eyeing the motorcycle that was now down the street. She started to go towards the house when she heard pounding of bare feet and turned to look just in time as Raven threw her arms around her in a big bear hug.

"I'm sorry, ok? I'm sorry, I'm a shitty friend, please don't kill me or make any of my stuff blow up! I have a lot of stuff I can't replace that took me ages to get! I want to help you, please, I'm sorry."

A wave of guilt hit the blonde hard in the stomach as she heard the truthfulness her tone and the memories of what Finn and her had done earlier that night, all the blonde could do was nod her head. She saw her mother watching them, and she leaned back and said in a hushed voice, "Can I stay with you tonight?"

"Sure." Raven smiled instantly brightening. "Sinclair is gone for the night, so it'll be just us."

"Ok." Clarke nodded and then faced her mother. "I'll be next door. You don't have to stay up worrying about me."

"Clarke-"

"I need time." The blonde interrupted her mother. She was about to add something when Abby opened her mouth but it was closed just as quickly, and she received a nod before the older Griffin woman disappeared back into the house.

Seconds later, the curtains were drawn shut and the living room light was turned off. The hall light remained on though; Clarke figured in case she changed her mind and ventured home later. Turning to Raven, she smiled slightly and lifted her arm, "After you."

"No, guests first!" Raven smiled back as they both started for the house. "Hey?"

"Yeah?" Clarke looked over at her.

Nodding in the direction Lexa had gone, Raven asked, "What do you call a witch's motor bike?"

Clarke's eyes narrowed, trying to determine if she was being serious or not. "What?

"A baaaarrrroooooooommmm stick!"

"Oh, my god, Rae!" She tried really hard not to laugh but she couldn't help it. "You're ridiculous!"

"I'm just getting started!" They laughed together as they started walking inside. "Why do witches only ride their brooms after dark?"

"I don't know! Why?"

"That's the time to go to sweep!"

The echoing of their laughter could be heard down the street until they were inside behind closed doors.

…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: That's so Raven! Lol! I've waited this whole time to post some of my witch jokes and I hope you enjoyed their corniness! Admit it you laughed! Maybe a snicker? A giggle? Ok, if you only smiled at them, then I'd say they were still a success! Hope you enjoyed this update! Find me on Kik under: RhydianKnight if you would like to chat! ~RK
> 
> …
> 
> B/N: She told me like…3 different witch jokes the other day. She has definitely been looking forward to post them. They were funny though, I have to admit. ~TGF


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So this idea came to me while in a massage. This chapter is completely new and I hope you all enjoy it! Leave me some love…Add me to KiK RhydianKnight and lets chat! ~RK  
> ..  
> B/N: The parallels in this chapter to canon is faaaantastic. Anyway, go blow up RK’s phone. I can’t be the only one. Haha ~TGF

…  
Blue eyes fluttered open and blonde eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Darkness encircled her, and she immediately sensed she wasn’t where she expected to wake up. Sitting up, her eyes only confirmed what she thought as she could just barely see the trees that surrounded her. She was in the middle of a wooded area instead of on the couch, where she distinctly remembered falling asleep after watching an episode of Once Upon a Time and arguing over Regina’s character with Raven. Standing up, she brushed herself off.  
A loud snapping noise of a branch or a twig behind her caused her to freeze. Holding her breath, she listened for any sign of what may have caused the noise, but only silence met her ears. Cautiously, she took a step and then another until she was sprinting from the area, headed in a direction she’d only hoped would lead her back to familiar territory.   
Eyes scanned all around her, left and right, trying to find something, anything, that looked familiar but came up short each time. Her heart thudded almost painfully within her chest as she moved, the moon illuminating her way until she found a break in the trees and she found herself along the shore of what appeared to be a lake.   
Pounding of footsteps thudding behind her caused her to quickly dart to the right along the water’s edge. Looking behind her, she could see a hooded figure break the tree line and head in her direction. Before she could turn to look forward, she found herself airborne after having missed seeing the exposed root in her path.   
Falling hard, she felt the air rush out of her lungs as she landed and gasped when a blinding pain shot from her knee. Panic began to set in as whoever was following, gained ground and was soon upon her. She barely had time to flip over when her shoulders were grasped and she was pulled roughly to her feet.  
“Get off me!” She wheezed as she thrashed about, trying to loosen the hold upon her as she was forced to move forward.   
“Run!”   
Before she could protest a terrifying guttural howl from behind them caught her attention. She could hear branches breaking as what sounded like something huge pursued them, the ground shaking underfoot, making it hard not to fall over.   
“What the hell?” Her jaw dropped as a huge dark gorilla-like figure appeared in the spot she and the stranger beside her came from.   
“Clarke, run!”  
Blue eyes widened as the beast turned its head in their direction and let out a roar before leaping in their direction. With its first step, the blonde turned and followed the hooded figure as they ran as fast as they could, cutting back into the trees and making their way through the wooded foliage in an attempt to lose whatever that beast was.   
With every step she took, Clarke’s knee objected and sent pain throughout her body causing her to slow down shortly after they had started running until she came to a complete stop. Breathing heavily, she could hear the beast behind her, causing her heart to beat erratically in her chest as fear shot through her veins.   
There was no way she was going to outrun whatever that thing was, and the hooded figure had disappeared having not noticed she had stopped. Sliding down the tree trunk she was leaning against, she tried to slow her breathing, the shaking of the ground intensifying with the beast getting closer and closer.  
It stopped somewhere behind her, its proximity close enough for her to hear its snorts as it breathed heavily. Her eyes shut as she held her own breath, hoping it would continue on its way and not discover her hiding area. She heard it move away and let out a small sigh of relief when silence fell upon her once more.   
Inhaling deeply to build her courage, she opened her eyes and peered around the tree trunk, only to let out a stifled yelp when a shadowy figure flashed in front of her and a hand covered her mouth.  
“Sshhh.”  
Blue eyes widened as the beast came back into view. Her eyebrows furrowed as it walked into a ray of moonlight and she was able to get a good look at it. It appeared to be a gorilla, but it wasn’t. With its mouth open she could see sharp dagger like teeth and its red demonic eyes reflected the moonlight making them appear as if they were glowing.   
“We need to move.”  
The voice in her ear caused her body to tense and her head whipped around to be met with familiar green eyes looking intently back at her. Hood having fallen from her head, Clarke now looked upon a face she could not forget easily.  
“Lexa?”  
Before the brunette could open her mouth, the beast let out a roar and they both turned in time to see it heading in their direction.   
“Clarke! Run!”   
Wasting no time arguing, the blonde immediately began to follow as they made their way through the foliage. Her knee continued to protest but the adrenaline coursing through her veins spurred her on as she kept up with the brunette.   
“Come on! This way!”  
Sliding to a halt, Clarke watched as Lexa dropped off a ledge down into a ravine. She watched as the woman started making her way towards a cave like inlet yards away. For a split second she contemplated following, the drop being at least ten feet. But after hearing the beast gaining on her, her mind was made up for her and she jumped.  
Airborne, her body twisted awkwardly and upon impact she hit her shoulder on the other side. Letting out a cry of pain, tears immediately pricked at her eyes. Between her knee and her shoulder, she was in too much pain for even the adrenaline to keep her moving.  
“I swear, even in your dreams you’re the clumsiest woman ever!” She heard Lexa huff as she reappeared by her side and wrapped an arm around the blonde’s waist, throwing the other around her shoulders.  
“Dream?” Clarke grunted as they hobbled towards the end of the ravine. “This can’t be a dream! This is a fucking nightmare!”  
“Less talking, more running.”   
As they came upon the opening, Clarke felt the ground shake beneath her feet and she lost her balance when the brunette was forced to release her when she too fell to her knees under the sudden shift. The brunette quickly regained her footing and reached down to help the blonde up when Clarke felt her leg be grabbed.  
Blue eyes looked behind her to find that the beast had jumped down into the ravine after them and now had a hold of her leg in its massive hand. Terrified, she looked back to Lexa and shook her head, defeat washing over her as she felt her body being dragged back, “Leave me!”  
“Never!” Lexa yelled as she released the hold on the blonde and stood back before thrusting her arms forward. “Let her go!”  
Clarke watched as a steady forest green light came from the brunette’s hands, bypassing her and hitting the beast square in the chest. Her leg was release as the beast stumbled backwards, giving Lexa enough time to help Clarke to her feet and get them into the unknown darkness.   
Suddenly, a light appeared from the brunette as she held something in her hand and Clarke could see they were in some kind of dirt tunnel. She squinted her eyes as Lexa turned every which way as if looking for something, when she let out a frustrated sigh, Clarke watched as the brunette turned and faced the opening where they could see the beast had risen and was shaking its head.   
“You better hope for another way out!” Lexa yelled just before thrusting her hand forward once more, the colored light reappearing and before the blonde could open her mouth to ask what she’d meant, dirt and rocks fell at the entrance and she was knocked down to the ground.  
The howl of the beast was silenced as the rockslide effectively cut off access to them. Clarke could feel Lexa covering every inch of her body as she helped shield the blonde from getting hurt from the falling debris. Opening her eyes, she coughed as she inhaled and dust filled her nostrils.   
“Well, that was fun.” Lexa muttered as she moved and stood up.  
“Hardly.” Clarke grunted as she took the brunette’s hand and stood as well. “What the hell was that?”  
“A pauna.” Lexa frowned. “Come on, we need to move before it finds its way in here and we’re trapped.”  
Clarke stared dumbly as she watched the brunette turn, holding the object that illuminated their way out in front of her as she made her way through the tunnel. Moving to follow, she shook her head in confusion. None of this was making any sense.  
“What the fuck is a pauna?” Clarke asked as she hobbled, trying hard to ignore the pain in her shoulder and knee.  
“A demonic mutant gorilla.” Lexa replied as they came to an opening that seemed to lead to multiple different tunnels. The brunette looked back at her pointedly, “Well? Which way?”  
“How should I know?” Clarke shook her head, her frustration evident.   
“You should know! This is your dream!” The brunette began to pace. “God, I can’t believe your mother kept this from you.”  
“What do you mean this is my dream?” Reaching out, she wrapped her hand around Lexa’s wrist bringing her to a stop in front of her, “Please, can you stop speaking riddles and just explain?”  
Green eyes looked back at her as if she wasn’t going to when suddenly they softened, “This is your dream, Clarke. Everything in this dream is conjured by you and can change just as easily if you will it.”  
“This is another witch thing huh?” Clarke asked. “It’s happening because I’m in Arkadia and that’s why it’s never happened before?”  
“I don’t have all the answers.” Lexa shook her head and then looked pointedly at the tunnels in front of them. “Now, which way?”  
Before Clarke could open her mouth to argue that she didn’t know which direction to go, the loud roar of the beast echoed throughout the tunnels causing her blood to freeze within her veins. Fear gripped her as she turned left and right, looking down each of the blackened openings, unable to see past the light Lexa held.   
“Which way?!” Lexa asked again before pulling the blonde to face her. Green eyes looked into terrified blue, “I know you’re scared and confused, but we need to move and we need to move now!” Fingers ran through blonde locks as if to try to soothe Clarke, “Think.”  
Shutting her eyes and taking a deep breath, Clarke tried to focus on the tunnels and willing the answer for a way out to come to her. Hearing another roar, her eyes flew open and filled with tears.  
“I don’t know!”   
“Figure it out!”  
“I can’t!”  
“Yes, you can!”  
“No, I can’t.”  
The heavy footfalls of the beast could now be heard echoing throughout the cavern they were in, interrupting their argument as they both turned from one tunnel to the next. Instinctively, Clarke grabbed Lexa’s hand as the grunts became louder and louder. Feeling her hand squeezed, she looked over to see green eyes staring back at her.  
“That thing is going to get us if we do not get out of her.” Lexa took a deep breath and nodded once more to the tunnels, “Which way?”  
Beads of sweat appeared on her forehead as Clarke looked at the tunnels. She had no idea how to figure out which way to go, or how to ‘will’ the way to be shown. Taking a leap of faith and praying to whatever deity was listening, she hobbled towards one pulling the brunette with her.   
“If we die, you should know that I find you highly attractive and I enjoyed our kiss almost too much. I don’t get you, I don’t get whatever keeps making us come together, but if we make it out of this, I would really like to find out.” Clarke said before she could stop the word vomit.   
“Well, thank you, but we’re not going to die.” Lexa responded, her light guiding the way as they moved. “I won’t let that happen.”  
They continued on in rough silence, their labored breaths and Clarke’s occasional whimper the only things to be heard as the noise of the beast grew fainter and fainter. Heart rates slowed as did their pace. Clarke sighed in relief as light appeared literally at the end of the tunnel and they walked out into a field surrounded by woods.  
“Well, it’s not what I was expecting, but at least we’re away from that thing.” Lexa said as they continued move further away.  
“Lexa, I need to stop.” Clarke all but cried out as she felt her leg give way and she stumbled forward.  
The brunette caught her before she could hit the ground and slowly set her down. “I’ve got you.” She reassured the blonde. “Where does it hurt?”  
“My knee.” Clarke winced as she tried moving her injured leg and pain shot through her like razorblades. “And my shoulder.”  
Lexa’s hands moved to her shoulder, peeling back her t-shirt to get a better view of the injury. The blonde winced as it was poked and prodded until suddenly there was no more pain. Opening her eyes completely, she looked over to see a soft glow coming from Lexa’s hand as it slowly hovered and moved around her shoulder.   
Blue eyes watched in awe as she did the same for her knee until Clarke felt no pain at all. She looked bewildered into green eyes when Lexa looked up. Her mouth opened, but words escaped her. Behind the strong demeanor the woman before her portrayed, she could see past the façade and recognize the caring gentle soul she really had.   
A smirk appeared at the edges of her lips as she thought of something, “Now, why didn’t you do that before?”  
Shock crossed the brunette’s features before a playful grin appeared and Clarke was shoved away when Lexa stood up, “Maybe, if someone would have figured out a way out faster, I could have.”  
“So you’re saying that this was my fault?” Clarke huffed as she found her footing as well.  
Lexa looked at her with a ‘Duh’ expression before she turned to look around. “What now, Princess?”  
Anger flared within blue eyes at the nickname, “Don’t call me that.”  
“Sorry. I overheard, what’s his name, call you that and figured it was fitting.” Lexa shrugged as she kicked a rock into some bushes.   
“It is not ‘fitting’.” Clarke started walking, not caring for direction as apparently it didn’t matter much.   
“Now where are you going?” Lexa asked as she hurried after her.  
“I don’t know. Anywhere.” The blonde threw her hands in the air as she walked, “Does it matter? This is all a dream!”  
“Do you want to know why this is happening?”   
Stopping midstride, Clarke spun around to see the frustrating brunette had come to a stop as well and stood a couple feet away from her with her arms crossed.   
“I mean, there is a reason, especially if you’re dreaming about demonic mutant gorillas.” Lexa added as she shrugged. “But if you want to continue walking-”  
“Will you just fucking spill it already?” Clarke interrupted tired of the games and just wishing she’d wake from this nightmare.   
A thoughtful look flashed across Lexa’s features and she opened her mouth as if she was just about to concede, when she suddenly shut it and shrugged again, “Nah.”  
“Lexa!” Clarke howled in frustration as the brunette began to walk away.  
“Clarke!” Lexa mimicked her.   
“Oh, for the love of all that is fucking holy!” Clarke stomped her foot. “You can’t be serious!”  
“And you wonder why everyone keeps calling you ‘Princess’?” Lexa shot her a pointed look before continuing to walk away.   
“Lexa, please!” Clarke hurried to follow, hating the fact that she was now begging to get the information being withheld from her. “Damn it! You’re just as stubborn here as in-”  
“Emotions!” Green eyes bore into her once more as the woman stopped and spun around, nearly causing Clarke to run into her. “Everything is caused by your emotions! Magic is most powerful when you feel a certain way. Love, anger, sadness, the list goes on and on.”  
“So then why are you here?” Clarke asked her head tilting to the side. She barely knew the brunette and to have a lucid dream about her made no sense.  
“Really?” Laughter burst from the brunette instantaneously causing Clarke to smile. “You literally just told me not too long ago your feelings and you’re questioning why I’m here?”  
Clarke felt a blush slowly creep up her neck into her face as she realized the absurdity of the question she’d asked. “Ok fine, then why is that beast thing after us?”  
Lexa’s smile faded as quickly as it appeared and her face grew solemn. “It’s not a good sign.” She shook her head and looked up, “Seriously, what did I do to deserve this?”  
“What do you mean?” Clarke felt her heart begin to race as fear slowly creeped through her. She had a feeling she wasn’t going to like the answer and when Lexa looked at her, she knew from the look in the brunette’s eyes that she was right.   
“The pauna is a bad omen and most who see it within their dreams have death surrounding them.” Lexa placed her hands on either side of Clarke, “Someone close to you is going to die.”  
Clarke’s eyes shut, unable to take the intense eye contact. So many things ran through her head at the revelation. She was unsure as to whether or not to believe what was being told to her, after all this was a dream. Arms wrapped around her and she sunk into the warm embrace, her nose finding the crook of Lexa’s neck.  
Soft lips pressed against her forehead causing her to melt further into the brunette’s arms. Both were content to stand there, neither uttering a word, only the sound of their breathing breaking the otherwise quiet area. Clarke felt safe within Lexa’s arms and the familiar calm that usually overcame her senses, began to wash through her entire being and she welcomed it.   
That was until in the back of her mind she felt an insistent pulling suddenly begin, which caused her to wince and pull away from Lexa abruptly. Concerned green eyes looked back at her as she dropped to her knees.  
“Clarke!”  
“What’s happening?”   
The pressure was almost unbearable, her vision spotting. She felt arms wrap around her once more and she forced her eyes open to look up into the beautiful face of Lexa.  
“I think you’re waking up.” Lexa said with a frown. “But it’s not supposed to be this way. You’re supposed to just fade.”  
A shot of pain erupted throughout Clarke’s body causing her to scream out in agony.  
“Clarke!” Lexa yelled just before the blonde’s eyes rolled back and the darkness consumed her.  
…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Dun, dun, dunnnnnnn! What the hell is going on? I can’t tell ya! I guess you’ll have to wait ever so patiently for the next chapter! Leave me some lovin! ~RK


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I am sooooo totally fired, I know! My apologies! Life kinda swept me away ;) and I wasn’t able to get this part figured out and up for you all. That and I started a new story called Darkest Calling which got me sidetrack but hey it’s another 100 fanfic so if you wanna check it out go for it! Major kudos to my Beta TGF for sticking with me and harassing me to get this done! You should probably thank her and visit her own page to check out her writing! ThatGayFriend. Look her up. I recommend it! ~RK

…  
Pain radiated throughout her head causing her to moan in agony and bring her hands up only to be met by resistance as they were pushed away.  
“Don’t move.” Raven’s voice was in her ear causing her to immediately still.   
“Raven?” Clarke questioned, eyes still closed.  
“You must have had some crazy dream, Griffindor.” Raven replied placing her hand on the blonde’s forehead.  
“What happened?” Clarke winced slightly at the touch, she relaxed as the pain slowly subsided.  
“You hit your head on the coffee table after you started thrashing about on the couch.” Raven explained. “Open your eyes, how many fingers do you see?”  
The blonde did as she was told and blinked a few times as her vision was blurry for a moment before clearing. “Three.” She replied sighing. “What did you do to my head?”  
“I took away your pain. The gash is still there but you should feel better.” Raven sat back on her heels, “I should go get your mom.”  
“No!” Clarke sat up quickly only to grab her head as she became dizzy.  
“Whoa! Lay back down.”   
“Don’t go get her, please. I don’t want to deal with her right now.”  
“Ok, I won’t.”  
“Thank you.”  
“Sooooo, what were you dreaming about?” Raven asked moving to sit on the couch.  
Clarke’s eyebrows furrowed. “I don’t remember.”  
“I hate when that happens.”   
“Yeah, me too.”   
Clarke tried thinking back to what could have caused her to move so violently in her dreams as to knock her off the couch, but nothing came to mind.   
Raven checked her phone and sighed, “Well, it was about time to get up anyway. You hungry?”  
As if on cue, the blonde’s stomach made itself known, causing both girls to laugh. “I’d take that as a yes.”  
The girls got up to make breakfast. And by breakfast, Clarke realized, meant they'd be eating Toaster Strudels. Not just a choice between one or two flavors like any normal household usually has either. She discovered that Raven had a standalone freezer completely full of practically every different kind the company had ever invented, including those seasonal flavors that are only out for a little while before they're gone again. In multiples.  
When questioned, her friend just shrugged and muttered, "Don't judge me!"  
Clarke reached into the freezer to grab the Apple Cream Danish and squeaked when her hand was smacked. "What the hell, Rae?"  
"Not those!" Raven moved the box to another location in the freezer. "Those are Sinclair's favorite. You can't have them."  
"Seriously?"  
"Yes, seriously!" Raven went and put hers in the toaster. "When I moved in and he tried those, he became obsessed with them. I took two out one day, and I swear he was going to have a heart attack! You haven't seen him upset. He gets this big ugly vein bulging on his forehead and he turns wicked shades of red and purple."  
"That's gross." Clarke laughed as she went to grab a different flavor. Before she could get her hands into the Boston Cream Pie box, it was removed from her hands, "Raven!"  
"Not these either!" Raven glared at her and had she not been holding the box possessively, like a child protecting their favorite toy, Clarke might have actually taken her seriously. "These are mine, you don't touch mine."  
"Oh, my god! You literally have, like, four boxes of them in there!"  
"No!"  
"Which one can I have then?"  
Clarke watched as dark eyes narrowed at her and then looked at the choices. Seeing those eyes venture from one box to the next, she herself pointed to one and her eyebrow rose in question. Her friend eyed it, bit her lip in contemplation, and then looked to the blonde before giving her a curt nod.  
Blue eyes rolled as the Cream Cheese and Strawberry box was retrieved before she shoved Raven for being a pain. Her own strudels were taken from the box just as the toaster popped Raven's up. She put hers in and leaned against the counter, watching her friend open her icing packets and with a skilled eye apply it to her heated pastries.  
"What's that supposed to be?" The blonde grinned as her friend huffed at her and glared.  
"A rocket ship going to the moon." Raven pointed out the blobby images. "See? Rocket, moon, stars."  
Clarke looked at the plate and smirked before patting her friends back. "It was a good attempt."  
"Shut up!" Raven rolled her eyes and shoved the blonde away, "Not everyone has an artist's touch like you do, freaking Picasso!"  
Clarke clapped as she laughed, "Name another one."  
"Van Gough." Raven shoved her again once the blonde started laughing. "I said I don't have art skills, not that I was stupid!"  
"Ok! Ok!" Clarke grabbed her pastries that popped up and threw them onto her plate, licking her finger and thumb as it was slightly burned.  
"Hurry up, Griffindor."  
Blue eyes looked over to see her friend disappearing into the hallway and soon after heard the thuds of her feet going up the stairs. Grabbing her own icing packets, she decided just to cover each pastry in it with no specific design before she too headed into the hallway to follow her friend upstairs.  
"What's the first thing you want to know?" Raven asked once the blonde had entered her room.  
"What happens at the Ascension Ceremony?" Clarke sat on the bed, folding her right leg under her as she bit into her strudel. "I'm not going to have to be naked am I? Or howl at the moon? Oh, god, please tell me it's not like Harry Potter and I wear a Sorting Hat!"  
"HA! No." Raven swallowed the bite she'd taken before answering, "The Ceremony is different for everyone, but the only part that is the same is that once you arrive, you will be tested for both the Light and the Dark sides. This outcome they say will show your true side."  
"How will I be tested?" Clarke asked her food forgotten.  
"That's where it's different." Raven put her own plate down as well. "I don't know what they'll do for you, but mine was through fighting."  
"Fighting?"  
"They stuck me in the arena with no weapons and I had to battle my way out of it."  
"I keep hearing about this 'arena', where is it?" Clarke's eyebrows furrowed. She was sure she'd notice a huge building in this small town if there was one.  
"City Hall." Raven grinned at the surprised look upon the blonde’s face. "It's very well disguised and you'd only see it if you were of age."  
"So, when I'm eighteen, I'll be able to see it?"  
"That and everything else." Raven nodded before continuing her explanation. "So, after the test of Light or Dark, you get to choose which side you want to be on-"  
"I get to choose?" Clarke interrupted.  
"We can sit here all day with me explaining this stuff or you could shut up for like two seconds so I can explain." Raven huffed in annoyance. Seeing the blonde's mouth close, she continued. "Yes, you get to choose. You still have your own free will and can decide which side you want to be on. After you choose, the High Elder of the Light or Dark will mark you signifying which side you belong."  
Clarke looked in confusion as Raven pulled her hair away from her neck and turned to show the blonde, but all she saw was the dark flesh of her skin. Unmarred like she claimed, "Uhm, I don't see anything."  
"Right." Raven smacked her forehead, "Sorry, so the mark is on the back of the neck and everyone's is different but usually you can tell which side you belong by its design color. White for Light, black for Dark. Mine is a white raven."  
Clarke snorted as she couldn't contain it. "A white raven?"  
"Shut up." Her friend took a bite of her breakfast, glaring at the blonde.  
"Ok, so next question." Clarke thought carefully, "What's up with you and Anya? Isn't she Dark?"  
"Yes." A soft smile spread across Raven's lips at the mention of the dirty blonde, "Just because we're on different sides doesn't mean we have to hate each other. There aren't any rules against fraternizing with the other side, just rules about fighting and stuff."  
"Gotcha." Clarke grinned and looked knowingly at her friend, "You really like her, don't you?"  
"Bite me." Raven rolled her eyes and sat back.  
"Nope, I'm a witch not a vampire." Clarke sassed and they both started laughing.  
This was definitely going to take a while to get the blonde caught up on the most important things about her new world.  
…  
Monday morning came and Clarke had stayed at Raven's all weekend. She was slowly learning the ins and outs of the life she should have known about a long time ago, but the more she learned the more she was getting nervous for her birthday. Her mother tried coming over a few times, but at Clarke's request, Raven sent the older Griffin back home without speaking to her daughter.  
With so many things running through her mind, Clarke had little time to deal with her mother after she'd been lied to her entire life. It was like she was expected to be ok with it now that she'd learned the truth and Clarke was certainly not ok with just overlooking the big fat lie that was her childhood growing up.  
Raven and Clarke stood at their lockers talking before they were needed in their first period classes when the blonde caught sight of someone she'd been waiting to confront all weekend. Her eyes narrowed and she quit paying attention to what her friend was saying.  
When Raven realized she was being ignored as the blonde's attention was somewhere behind her, she turned her head to see who Clarke was glaring at. "Oh, shit." As soon as she felt the blonde brush past her, she grabbed her arm barely catching it in time and held her back, "Clarke, don't do anything stupid."  
"I'm not." An innocent smile spread across the blonde's features.  
"Bullshit! I've seen what you can do," Dark eyes tracked down to Clarke's hands. "No going full-blown Rocky status, ok?"  
"Ok!" Clarke swiped her hand to push Raven's off her arm and stalked up to Harper. Once the other blonde realized there was someone behind her, she pushed her into the lockers hard enough to shake the whole row.  
"What the hell, you bitch." Harper sneered glaring at the obviously pissed off teen in front of her.  
"Clarke! You promised!" Raven groaned as she moved to stand between the two.  
"Why the fuck would you do that shit?" Clarke's hands clenched into fists, "I could've died in that fucking car! What the fuck did I do to you?"  
"Somebody had to break in the new girl." Harper shrugged before eyeing Raven, "Sure as hell wasn't looking like Raven was going to grow a pair of ovaries and do it."  
"Fuck you, Harper." Dark eyes glared as the brunette shifted slightly to stand beside Clarke, "I told you that there was another way and you ignored me."  
"The 'other way' would have taken too long." Harper rolled her eyes and looked at her naked wrist as if checking the time, "It's been five weeks and she's just realized she's a witch. Should we wait another five to inform her she's needed in our Circle?"  
"Circle?" Clarke looked over at her friend in confusion. Her mind went to this weekend trying to recollect anything being mentioned about a Circle but nothing came to.  
"See!" Harper huffed and threw her hands in the air. "This is torture! Leave it up to you, Reyes, and shit doesn't get done."  
"There's a lot to talk about and I didn't want to influence her decision!" Raven shoved the blonde, "But since you're forcing the issue, yes, Clarke, technically we need you for our Circle."  
"Care to explain further?" Blue eyes narrowed at the dark ones looking at her, a spark of blue flame flaring at her growing irritation.  
Seeing her friend's distress, Raven looked around and sighed, "Let's go somewhere and talk."  
"We have class in ten minutes." Harper pointed out, but when blue eyes found hers she quickly nodded, "Or we could just skip today and go somewhere Blondie can't blow shit up."  
"Watch it." Clarke growled reluctantly going back to her locker to grab her bag and slamming it shut before following the two out of the school.  
Deciding it best to avoid anything happening to her car, Raven lead them down the sidewalk towards the main road, they walked in silence for a bit before the brunette walked off the sidewalk and through some tall grasses that lead right to a line of trees.  
"You aren't taking me out here to murder me, are you?" Clarke half joked, breaking the silence that had hung over them since leaving the school. It was also a small attempt at calming her nerves as every time her eyes caught sight of Harper, she could feel herself steadily getting angrier.   
"Lame joke, Griffindor." Raven threw over her shoulder before continuing on.  
"I thought it was fitting." Harper smirked as blue eyes tracked to her and she shrugged, "What?"  
"Shut up, Harper." Raven snapped as she jumped over a fallen log. "If it wasn't for you and your big mouth, we wouldn't be out here."  
"If it wasn't for you and your closed mouth, we wouldn't be out here." Harper snapped back.  
"Both of you shut up!" Clarke yelled, her irritation having reached its boiling point and the other two witches should have known better as the three of them were ducking as a shower of bark was thrown at them from the tree next to Harper.  
"Shit!" Raven yelled as she looked up and saw the tall tree wavering, about to topple over. "Move! Now!"  
Looking up, Harper stood frozen to the spot, Clarke moved past her out of the way of the drop area. When she noticed the blonde wasn't moving, she rolled her eyes and ran back towards her. Their bodies colliding, falling to the ground with Clarke's momentum as the tree came crashing down where Harper had stood mere seconds ago.  
"Clarke! Harper!" Raven yelled as she quickly dashed around to get to her friends.  
Clarke groaned as she felt a branch across her back. "That's gonna leave a mark."  
"Mind getting off me now?" Harper sniped.  
"You're fucking welcome." Clarke growled as she lifted up, wincing in pain.  
"I'm not thanking you for saving me from a tree you caused to fall down." Harper stood with the help of Raven and started brushing herself off.  
"Why don't I drop another tree and this time I won't save your ass?" Clarke wanted to so badly, but the pain in her back prevented her from being as pissed off as she wanted to be.  
"You ok?" Concerned dark eyes appeared in her line of vision as Raven looked her over. "That was a wicked branch that landed on you."  
"No kidding?" Clarke rolled her eyes but couldn't help to partially smile, "Let's go wherever it was you were taking us."  
"This way." Raven said leading the way, this time at a slower pace as the two blonde's followed.  
Blue eyes widened as they came into a clearing. The grass was leveled out with a few wildflowers popping up here and there, six boulders sat in the middle forming a circle. The whole area was surrounded by trees and appeared well hidden.  
"What is this place?" Clarke asked finding her voice as she looked around.  
"This was the old ritual grounds." Raven explained when she realized Harper wasn't going to. Dark eyes rolled as the blonde moved over to a boulder and sat upon it with a look of boredom upon her face. "This place is sacred. It's where witches come together to bind their Circles and to do Circle magic."  
"You still haven't told me about this Circle." Clarke said pointedly.  
"Ugh!" Harper threw her hands in the air. "Your ignorance is annoying."  
"I'm still up for dropping another tree on you." Clarke's eyes burst into flames yet again causing the other blonde to sigh.  
"After your Ascension Ceremony, as a witch I mean, you get placed on a list." Raven interrupted Harper who had opened her mouth to say something. "Once there are three Light and three Dark witches, we are summoned to form a Circle. Circles of both Light and Dark keep the balance between the two."  
"It used to be that Light would only form with Light, the same with Dark." Harper interjected as she too got into the history telling. "But then the Elders saw the shift in power due to the number of Circles being formed, and they became desperate to find out another solution. Three Dark witches who were tired of the fighting came forward and offered to be part of an experiment to bind themselves with three Light witches. And voila!"  
"So, where do I come into this?" Clarke looked from one to the other, "You said you needed me."  
"We need another Light witch to form our Circle." Raven said before looking away from her friend. "I didn't tell you because I didn't want to influence your decision like that."  
"And if I were to choose Dark?" Clarke treaded carefully.  
"We'd have to wait until someone else becomes of age to choose." Harper glared at Clarke, "We've waited nearly half a year to complete our Circle."  
"What about the others?" Clarke ignored the other blonde as she looked to Raven, "You said they are Light?"  
"Jasper, Finn and Monty are the only ones currently bound in a Circle." Dark eyes shrugged, "Maya and Zoe aren't eighteen yet."  
"But there's no guarantee either of them would be in our Circle, because you know, there's other kids here too that we don't talk to who might have a birthday before theirs." Harper added.  
"What's the significance of these Circles?" Clarke's head was swimming with all the new information she was getting and she felt a tiny headache forming.  
"It keeps the balance between the Light and the Dark, and Circle magic is way more powerful than individual magic." Harper grinned before frowning, "The only sucky part is we don't know who's going to be in our Circle from the other side."  
"You don't?"  
"No." Raven sat on a boulder as well. "Neither side finds out until the day of, when we all gather to bind the Circle."  
"Who are the guys bound with?" Clarke asked standing between the two.  
"Bellamy Blake, Nathan Miller, and John Murphy." Harper said as she pulled her legs up to sit cross legged.  
Raven saw her friend’s blue eyes looking at the ground, going back and forth as she processed everything she was being told, "Like I said, we won't know until the day of, but we aren't telling this to influence you to choose Light."  
"Well, I am." Harper said grinning as dark eye threw her a look. "What? I'm tired of watching the boys get to play around and we have to sit back and watch."  
"Shut up." Raven sighed before looking back to her friend. "Clarke?"  
"What's your mark?" Blue eyes looked up to the other blonde who gave her a surprised look.  
"It's hard to describe but it's a knot in the form of the Scottish Thistle." Harper explained and when Clarke looked at her like she was about to ask why she added, "My last name is McIntyre. My bloodline traces back to Scotland, that's the only explanation for it I can come up with."  
Clarke nodded. As a whole, everything made sense to her; it was just a lot to take in with the little time she'd been learning it. She walked around the boulder Raven sat upon and to the one sitting less than a few feet away. Reaching out, she touched it, running her fingertips over the grainy dirty surface. She lifted her head to find two pairs of eyes upon her and she sighed.  
"I'm going home."  
"I'll go with you." Raven jumped from her boulder but the blonde's hand being held up caused her to pause.  
"My home, Rae." Clarke said smiling softly at her. "I need time to think."  
"What about school?" Harper nodded in the direction they'd come in. "You'll get in trouble for playing hooky."  
"I don't care." Clarke started to walk the way they came.  
"For what it's worth," Harper's voice stopped her, "I don't actually hate you and I'm sorry that your car caught on fire."  
"And the beaker?" The blonde stopped and spun around, crossing her arms.  
"That too." Harper nodded in defeat, "If we're to be in the same Circle, I don't want any hard feelings. Truce?"  
Blue eyes tracked down to the hand being offered to her and she nodded, stepping forward and shaking it firmly, "I never had anything against you, just to be clear."  
"Understood." Harper nodded again.  
"And just to be clear about something else," Clarke released the hand she gripped and balled it into a fist before connecting it with Harper's face. "That was for the shit you pulled on me."  
"Clarke!" Raven moved quickly to intervene in case Harper lashed out in retaliation but was surprised when the blonde who'd been hit started laughing.  
"It's all good, Raven." Harper rubbed at the side of her face as she grinned at Clarke, "I deserved it. I mean, I torched the Griffin's car and spilled chemicals all over her. If all I get back is a whack to the head, I'm good."  
Clarke rolled her eyes and couldn't help but the chuckle at the absurdity of what Harper had just said, "You're right, better watch your back, Mickie."  
"Mickie?" Harper eyed her in confusion. "I'm not a fucking mouse!"  
"Ooooooh, she nicknamed you!" Raven jumped up and down in glee. "You two are gonna be best buds now!"  
"Hardly." Clarke smirked as she turned to leave.  
"Seriously, Mickie?" Harper called after her.  
"Your last name, dumbass. McIntyre, McI…Mickie." Clarke responded before disappearing into the thick of the woods. She shook her head as she heard the other two girls laughing behind her.  
…  
Going home turned into walking aimlessly around Arkadia until she ended up along the pier and found a spot to sit. Her back hurt from the welt she could feel rubbing against her shirt but it didn't stop her as she watched as the harbor came to life. Her blue eyes tracking to men and women running about boat decks and docks, readying for the day's journey out onto the water. There was a slight breeze rocking the boats, causing the waves to crash mildly against the shore.  
She pulled the leather jacket she wore tighter around her, ducking her head into the collar and inhaling the scent that still lingered there. Lexa's scent. Her eyes closed and she smiled as the now familiar sense of calm washed over her. Her thoughts stopped racing only to turn to and focus on one alone.  
While Clarke knew she was in no way ready to acknowledge her attraction towards the brunette, she couldn't help it. She was fascinated by her. The pull that seemed to drive them together seemed to always come in the most inopportune moments and while she was slightly annoyed at fate's weird sense of humor at making Lexa her savior and herself the damsel in distress, she couldn't help the smile that brushed across her lips at the idea that it was so fitting.  
Shaking her head, she rolled her eyes. She barely even knew the woman and she was sitting there romanticizing. Her birthday was in a few weeks and she had more important things to think about rather than someone she hardly knew. But the few times they were together, it felt as if she really did know her and that just made things even harder. Witches, Ascension Ceremonies, and Circles should be her main focus right now.  
"Ughhhhh!" Clarke picked up a rock and chucked it into the water, as far as she could throw. Reaching down to grab another, she was about to let it go as well before a voice stopped her.  
"I see your father's softball lessons still have their uses."  
Her mother's voice caused Clarke to jump and turn. She groaned when she saw that indeed the older blonde was standing near her, a loving smile upon her face. "I'm in deep shit aren't I?"  
"Language." Abby chastised.  
"You're not here to drag me back to school, are you?" Clarke asked making a face. It had to be time for third period and the idea of going back for senior English wasn't a pleasant one. It wasn't that she was bad at it. In fact, she was excelling in the class. It was just that her teacher had the most irritating wheezing sound that came from his nose whenever he spoke and she had to force herself to pay attention and look past it in order to get anything done.  
"May I?" Abby motioned towards the spot beside her and at the nod of her daughter's head she sat down, pulling her own jacket tighter around her. "No, you're excused."  
"They called you?" Another groan.  
"What do you expect, sweetheart? You were seen at school then suddenly you weren't in class." Abby chuckled, "I told them there was something going on and I forgot to call."  
"Why?" Clarke eyed her mother suspiciously.  
"Because." Abby sighed and took her daughter's hand, grateful when the contact wasn't rejected, "Look, I cannot apologize for what I did, but there is a lot you don't understand yet."  
"Raven's told me-"  
"Raven is just barely learning herself." Abby interrupted her, giving her that motherly look that always made Clarke cringe. "I was planning on talking to you about all of this, but of course when you procrastinate, the inevitable happens."  
"And your daughter finds out anyway." Clarke added.  
"Yes." Abby nodded. "Come home, Clarke."  
"I was planning on it." Blue eyes looked back over into the harbor. "It's where I was headed before I stopped here."  
"Good because we have plenty to talk about." Abby smiled and released her hand and taking the same arm and wrapping it around Clarke who leaned into the embrace. "I'm sorry that this all came about this way."  
"Me too." Clarke sighed, as much as she wanted to be mad at her mother, now that she was here, she really needed her. "Am I really an only child?"  
"Clarke!" Abby pulled away with an admonishing look upon her face.  
"What? It's a legitimate question!"  
Abby rolled her eyes skyward before turning to face her daughter even more, "Your father loved you. All those things happened before we found out that I was pregnant with you."  
Clarke felt the weight in her chest that always appeared whenever they talked about him. It hadn't been long since he'd been gone, but it felt like yesterday that she was forced to say her goodbyes. She felt like she was back in the hospital room, looking down at the shell of what was left of the man who used to be filled with so much life.  
"Oh, honey."  
She let out a choked sob and fell into her mother's arms again, clinging to her as if she were afraid to let go. In her mind she was still in that room. She could hear the beeping of the machines, the hissing of another, and the clamoring of the doctor and nurses around them. When she took a deep breath in, she could even smell the sterilization of the room and it made her cough so hard that her mother released her and began patting her back as she leaned forward. That caused her to wince from the injury and pull away.  
It was at that point that the collar of her jacket was raised and she caught the scent of it. That pulled her from the terrible memory and her coughing slowly subsided. She sat there trying to catch her breath, slowly inhaling in and out as her mother spoke to her in a soothing tone, words of comfort. She wiped her eyes and looked back to see the tears streaking down from hazel eyes. They hugged once more before the older Griffin woman pulled back suddenly.  
"This isn't your coat." Abby eyed her. "I've never seen you with this coat, where'd you get it?"  
Clarke felt the heat rising to her cheeks, but she didn't know why, "It's Lexa's, she gave it to me to wear when she brought me home."  
"You need to give it back." Abby sighed as blue eyes rolled, "I'm serious, Clarke, the Woods-"  
"-Family is nothing but trouble. Blah, blah, blah." Clarke interrupted as she stood up and brushed off her jeans, "I will give it back." She said as her mother stood as well, "Eventually." She muttered.  
"What was that?" Abby narrowed her eyes at her.  
"I said I will give it back actually." Clarke amended smiling when the look she received told her that her mother didn't believe that she'd actually said that.  
"Let's go, trouble maker." The older blonde wrapped her arm around Clarke's shoulders leading her towards their car that was parked down the pier from them. The younger blonde was only thankful that she wasn't questioned about her back and what happened as she had no clue how she was going to explain that to her mother.  
…  
With everything going on, Clarke decided it would be best to avoid Lexa as much as possible. She didn't want to further complicate her already complicated life as she tried to understand what she was being told. That and her emotions were everywhere as she spent the next week learning what she could from her mom, Raven, and the gang who had been informed that she was only now aware of her ancestry.  
Everyone was really supportive and answered any of her questions, most of them revolving around the Ascension Ceremony that would happen on the twenty sixth which was slowly creeping upon them. School did little to help her nerves as even trying to focus on her classes became a challenge and more often than not she was caught wondering off into her own world of thoughts and had been reprimanded a few times for doing so.  
Friday, after school, she told Raven she was going to walk home instead of catching a ride. She'd discovered that the fountain in the town square was the perfect place to people watch and just relax her mind. It'd been her go to for the past week to end up on a bench facing the fountain at some point throughout her day, before she'd head home or to hang out at the Boat House.  
Smiling at a woman walking her dog, she set her backpack down on the bench along with her leather jacket, well, Lexa's jacket, before pulling her sketchpad out and started working on the drawing she had partially done. Blue eyes bounced from paper to fountain, her hand moving effortlessly, the pencil gliding over the page with ease. Her eyebrows furrowed as from this distance she couldn't make out the detail on one of the statues making up the structure. Putting down the drawing, she stood and moved closer, eyeballing the design with the artist's eye she had.  
As she turned to go back to her bench, she felt somebody collide with her and she was falling backwards. Right into the fountain. The cold water enveloped her causing her to shoot up, gasping for air. Her feet found the bottom and she stood dripping heavily, looking very much like a drowned rat.  
Blue eyes found surprised green and she growled, "Seriously? This can't be happening!" She kicked at the water in frustration, yelping when she lost her footing and fell back in. An arm wrapped about her waist as she once again stood up, gasping for air.  
"Damn it, Clarke!"  
"It's your f-fucking f-fault I f-fell." Clarke stuttered as she started shivering profusely. She stumbled as she tried to step over the side of the fountain, only this time she was leaning out instead of in and she felt the arm around her waist tighten.  
"Let me get out first." Lexa huffed as she stepped out, keeping hold of the blonde before she helped her out as well.  
"You should really watch where you're running next time." The woman who had been walking her dog said to the brunette.  
"I wouldn't have to if you were watching where your mutt was going next time!" Lexa snapped at her as made sure Clarke's feet were safely on the cement outside of the fountain.  
"Dog is not a mutt and he can go wherever he pleases!" The woman glared at her, crossing her arms over her chest. "Why don't you apologize, take a hike and stop ruining people's days?"  
"Your dog is the reason I ran into her!" Lexa paused, "Wait, who the hell names their dog, Dog?"  
"I do! You got a problem with that?"  
Annoyed and shaking, the blonde shook her head in disgust as the two began to argue. She stomped over to the bench to collect her things, careful not to ruin her sketch by getting it wet and shoving it in the protection of her backpack. Looking at the jacket, she glanced back to the brunette who was still arguing with the feisty dog walker. Making a last minute decision, she grabbed it before walking away.  
"Clarke!"  
Blue eyes rolled skyward, she continued on walking, ignoring the infuriating brunette who was apparently running after her, if the pounding of footsteps hitting the pavement told her anything.  
"Clarke, wait!"  
Feeling the hand wrap around her arm, she yanked it out of Lexa's grasp and turned on the woman, causing her to stop and step back. The blonde followed, staying in her space, standing nose to nose with her.  
"No, Lexa! You don't gettt t-to do t-that!" Clarke hissed before shoving the woman back.  
"Do what?" Lexa hissed back. "I'm trying to make sure you're ok!"  
"T-ten minutes lat-t-ter!" Clarke huffed shoving the brunette back. "You knock-k me over and you don't even h-have the d-decency t-to say you're s-sorry!"  
Lexa gritted her teeth, green eyes narrowing as she shook her head, "It was not ten minutes and if you weren't stubborn you would have known that's what I am here to do!"  
"I am not-t st-tubborn." Clarke pushed her again, stepping with the brunette as she stepped back. "I c-call it like it-t is."  
"You are, too." Lexa stopped stepping backwards, forcing the blonde to stop her advancement. "If you'd just shut up for two seconds you'd hear me say I'm sorry."  
"You-" Blue eyes narrowed when a tanned hand covered her mouth.  
Lexa rolled her eyes in annoyance and sighed, "Look, I'm sorry, ok? I was out for a run, I nearly tripped over that stupid mutt, and in doing so I ran into you." She dropped her hand, "It was completely accidental, and I'm sorry."  
Clarke looked into those expressive green eyes, nodded when she found the sincerity within them, and then turned to start walking back towards her house. She felt the jacket slip from her arm as it was being pulled back. "Hey!"  
Spinning around her hand immediately came up to grab the jacket. Eyes narrowing, she glared at the woman before her. She knew it wasn't hers technically, and she had no right to grab it back, but she wasn't ready to give it up just yet.  
Lexa held up her hands with an innocent look upon her face, the jacket between them as she hooked it over the blonde's shoulders and rubbed her hands up and down her arms. Green eyes looked into blue as she did so, and within a few minutes of just standing there with those tanned hands running up and down her arms, she started to feel her shivering cease.  
"There." Lexa stepped back slightly, her hands dropping to her sides.  
Clarke looked over herself, while she was still dripping wet, she no longer felt like she was going to chip a tooth from the severe chattering of her teeth. In any other situation, she'd still be shaking and on the brink of possible hypothermia, it was like magic. Then she realized and looked back up, "You?"  
"Don't tell anyone." Lexa glanced down at her shoes before looking up scowling slightly, "Seriously, don't mention it."  
"Or what?" Clarke smirked, "The big bad, Dark witch can't help me now?"  
"Shut up." Green eyes rolled causing the blonde to laugh softly.  
"Seriously? You've saved me how many times, and now you're worried about using a little magic on me?"  
Lexa fixed her gaze upon her, staring intently, "The other times magic wasn't involved, Clarke."  
A shiver ran down the blonde's spine and she pulled the jacket around her tighter, "Oh."  
"Let's get you home." Lexa started walking, the blonde following beside her. They walked in silence for a few feet before the brunette was first to speak, "So, why have you been avoiding me?"  
Clarke smirked and looked pointedly at their appearance, "Clearly, I'm not."  
"Smartass." Lexa nudged her, a small smile appearing at the corner of her lips. “How’s your head?”  
Seeing the partial smile caused Clarke's stomach to flutter and she made it a goal to make the brunette smile again before they made it all the way to her house. Realizing she’d been asked a question her eyebrows furrowed, “Huh?”  
“I asked how your head was.” Lexa repeated.  
Confusion filled blue eyes, “It’s fine.” Looking to the brunette beside her, she could tell that was the response she was expecting. Before she could ask what she meant, Lexa spoke.  
"This last week, you haven't been in your usual hang out spots." She said.  
"Stalker much?" A blonde eyebrow rose.  
"No!" An exasperated look crossed the brunette's features. "It was simply an observation."  
"Sounds like stalking to me." Clarke shrugged, "But call it whatever you want if it makes you sleep at night."  
"Ugh, never mind!" Lexa huffed and crossed her arms as they walked, avoiding looking at the blonde who was trying her best not to outright laugh at how adorable the brunette looked at that moment.  
As they walked in silence, Clarke kept sneaking glances at her. Lexa wore a Nike tank top that was cut short across the midriff and tight running leggings. Her hair was pulled up into a high ponytail with her purple bandana folded and tied around her forehead. Green eyes caught her staring and she quickly looked away and attempted to keep a blush at bay, but failed miserably.  
When she looked back towards the brunette, she rolled her eyes at the knowing smirk upon Lexa's lips even though inwardly she was jumping for joy at being the cause of it. Even if it was at her own expense. In no time, they were walking down her street and up to her house. Sighing she turned to look at the brunette who stood appearing almost awkward.  
"You don't have to avoid me." Lexa brushed back a lock of her hair that had fallen from the hair-tie. "But if you want to, after what I did, then I'll understand."  
"I don't." Clarke said quickly, not able to stand the dejected look upon that beautiful face, "Want to, that is. I just have a lot I'm going through. It's not every day a girl finds out that she's really a witch who gets these magical powers on her eighteenth birthday, ya know?"  
"Yeah." Green eyes lifted, "I suppose you're right."  
"Exactly." They continued to look at each other, eyes connecting on a deeper level than what they'd ever had before. Clarke finally broke free of the hypnotic daze and looked down as she shrugged the jacket off her shoulders to hand to the brunette. "Here."  
Lexa lifted her hand to take it, their fingertips brushing in the exchange and holding there. Green eyes connected once more with blue as their hands were guided more towards Clarke, before Lexa released her hold.  
"Keep it, I've got another." She shrugged at the surprised look upon the blonde's face, "This one looks better on you anyway."  
Clarke smiled, it wasn't shy or witty, it was a full blown smile that lit up her entire face. Before she lost her nerve, she leaned forward and kissed Lexa's cheek. "Good night, Lexa."  
"Good night, Clarke." Lexa replied smiling at her once more as the blonde stepped away.  
Blue eyes watched as the brunette started walking backwards towards the sidewalk before turning to run but as she got there, Clarke yelled after her, "Hey! Careful not to push any other unsuspecting blonde's into water on your way home will ya?"  
Lexa shrugged as she turned slightly to look at her, "Only you, Griffin!" She winked at her before she took off running back towards the heart of town.  
"What do you call a witch that stays out all night?" Raven's voice behind her caused Clarke to jump and place her hand over her heart. Before she could say anything, her friend grinned, "A fresh air freak!"  
"Seriously, Rae?" Clarke shook her head but grinned. "You need better jokes!"  
"Oh, come on! That one is awesome." Raven laughed as she followed the blonde into the Griffin house, "What did the teenage witch say to her mother?"  
"I don't know, what?" After a month of listening to her friend's jokes, she knew better just to play along.  
"Can I have the keys to the broom tonight?"  
"That was horrible!"  
"Hey, girls." Abby said as they both walked into the kitchen.  
"Hi." They replied in unison.  
"Ok, ok, one more and I'll shut up." Raven said smirking, "What do little witches do after school?"  
Clarke rolled her eyes as she put her backpack down, "I don't know, what?"  
"Their gnomework." Abby said before Raven had even opened her mouth.  
"Awe man! C'mon, Mrs. G!" The brunette frowned and crossed her arms pouting.  
That got the younger blonde to start laughing hysterically as her mother shrugged and muttered, "Beat you to the punch line, just deal with it, honey."  
Hazel eyes fell upon her daughter causing Clarke to stop laughing at the serious look she was given. Or maybe it was the wooden spoon being pointed at her. She didn't know which was worse.   
"I don't want to know why you're dripping water onto my kitchen floor, I don't want to know why Lexa Woods was on my porch, and I don't want to know why you still have her jacket. But I do want to know how fast you can run up those stairs and jump into a hot shower and get dressed for dinner. It'll be ready in twenty minutes."  
"Yes, Mom." Clarke's shoulders slumped as she turned to do just that.  
"Since your Mom ruined my last joke I get one more." Raven sidled up to her as she followed, "What do you call two witches who share a broomstick?"  
Blue eyes rolled, "What?"  
"Broom Mates!"  
Clarke couldn't contain her amusement and Raven air punched a few times at the success of her lame joke causing her friend to laugh. They high fived before disappearing into the room where Raven would make herself comfortable on the bed while the blonde grabbed a few things before going down the hall to jump in the shower.  
Thoughts of a certain brunette plagued her mind.  
…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Yaaaaasssss! The corny jokes continue! Ha! You will love my corny witch jokes before I am through with you! Bwahahahaha! And dayyyyyummm this was a monster of a chapter for me so I hope y'all enjoyed it! What is up with Clexa? Like, seriously, they need to figure out their shit already! ~RK


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Darkest Calling got the best of me as I spent all my recent time working on that instead of this story. I combined two chapters to make this update really long in hopes to appease those of you who have yet to read this story. To those who have already this all should look familiar. ~RhydianKnight
> 
> ***Apologies for the formatting, I don't have the time to go through and fix it at the moment***

...  
"Please, Mrs. G?"  
"I said no, Raven."  
"Come on! You know you wanna have some time alone to yourself!"  
"No."  
Clarke skipped the last few steps as she was coming downstairs when she heard her friend's voice pleading with her mother. When she rounded the corner, she wasn't surprised to see Raven on her knees while her mother sat at the table with a cup of coffee.  
"Uhm…what's going on here?" She asked as she walked over to the fridge to grab the orange juice.  
"Griffindor!" Raven jumped up excitedly and spun around the island to face the younger blonde. "Help me out! Your mom says you can't go with me to go on the last camping trip of the season to Mount Weather!"  
"Moooooom!" Clarke whined placing the carton on the counter and facing her mother. "Please? We will be super careful!"  
"Yeah and it's a long weekend since we don't have any school on Monday-"  
"You don't have school on Monday?" Abby interrupted Raven as she stood and went to the calendar on the fridge. "It's not a holiday, why don't you have school?"  
"Some mandatory faculty thing." Clarke shrugged, "I thought I told you that on Wednesday at dinner?"  
"You did?" Abby scratched her head trying to think back to that night. "I don't remember."  
"You were reading that naughty book with the buff Irish guy on it." Raven supplied for the older Griffin woman whose eyes widened in realization and then face blushed. "You know the one with the really long sword?"  
"Right!" Abby cleared her throat and shook her head as the two girls started laughing at the innuendo, "Still, the answer's no."  
"But Mooooooommmmm." Clarke whined some more. "I'm gonna be like the only kid not going and when we go back to school Tuesday everyone is going to be talking about how Jasper fell into the fire because he tripped over a log when he tried to jump it and you know what? I won't be able to say that I was there to help him up and pat out the flames!"  
"You wouldn't want poor Jasper to catch fire without Clarke being there would you?" Raven said as both girls put on their best pouty faces on.  
Abby looked between the two and started laughing, "Telling me Jasper is going to fall into the fire is the best you girls can come up with to convince me to get you to go?" She wiped the tears from her eyes, "That's the most ridiculous thing I've heard!"  
"No, we're saying if something like that were to happen and Clarke's not there THEN it would be horrific!" Raven fell to her knees again, holding her hands clasped together in front of the older woman. "Please? Please? Please?"  
Clarke followed suite mimicking her friends pose, "Please, Mom? I'm begging you! Can I please, please, please go?"  
Abby rolled her eyes to the ceiling as she slightly shook her head, "Why did you leave me to deal with her all by myself?"  
"Yes!" Clarke jumped up and wrapped her arms around her mother who embraced her back. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"  
Abby chuckled and placed her hands on either side of Clarke's face as her daughter pulled back to look at her, "Honestly, you get away with too much!"  
"It's the Griffin charm." Clarke winked at her mother who laughed along with her.  
"You're lucky you got your fathers eyes." Abby shook her head, "If you'd gotten mine, we wouldn't be discussing this."  
"Wait, so this means you're going?" Raven asked bringing their attention back to the fact that she was still on her knees looking at them peculiarly.  
"Clarke can go." Abby nodded.  
"Yes!" Raven jumped up and wrapped her own arms around both of the blondes in a group hug. "Thank you, Mrs. G!"  
"When do you leave?" Abby asked as she pushed both the girls away from her and stepped back to the table to retrieve her coffee.  
"In an hour." Raven said smiling as she and Clarke high fived.  
"Then you'd better go pack." Abby said to her daughter.  
"Already packed." Blue eyes danced merrily as she gave her mother a cheeky grin.  
"Child!" Abby said shooing them out of the kitchen. "Away with you, two!" When she noticed the carton of forgotten orange juice on the counter she grumbled, "Teenagers!"  
With Raven's help it didn't take long to put both their things in the little Honda before they were ready to go. Clarke face palmed herself when she realized she had walked out of the house without her jacket and told Raven to wait a minute while she ran inside to grab it.  
"You aren't going to stop wearing her jacket are you?" Raven asked eyeing the blonde as she got in the car.  
"Of course not, she gave it to me." Clarke smiled as she placed the item onto her lap. It was still rather warm out for an October day so she would wear it later when it cooled. "Besides, I didn't say anything about you wearing Anya's t-shirt for three days after she 'left' it at your house." She enunciated with air quotes.  
"Touché." Raven surrendered and started up the car, backing out of the driveway and heading out.  
"I know for a fact you didn't invite the others." Clarke stated eyeing her friend. "So what are we really up to?"  
"Well, I couldn't exactly come out and ask your mother if you could go hang out with a bunch of Dark witches now could I?" Raven grinned as she slipped her sunglasses on and shrugged a little.  
"You're bad!" Clarke laughed as she too put her own sunglasses on and got comfortable.  
They had talked about getting away for the long weekend to avoid their group of friends. Both had been annoyed by them over the last couple of weeks as Maya had been trying to talk them into signing up to join the dance committee for the upcoming Halloween Dance. The idea caused both girls to cringe at her peppy enthusiasm of figuring out a specific theme for it. Seriously, it was Halloween and everyone in Arkadia was a witch. Did it really matter if they went with the Witch theme or Vampire theme?  
And then there was Jasper who kept trying to stuff new concoctions of food items down their throats whenever they stepped foot into the Boat House. At first, Clarke was more than happy to test out his dishes, but after awhile she got tired of being a guinea pig and the mere thought of trying another hamburger with anything like mozzarella sticks to rolled-up taco burritos, caused her to gag. That and she was pretty sure the two pounds she gained was from his cooking alone. That alone caused her to spend extra time during her free period to run the track at school.  
Monty was overly excited about his barista job at one of the few coffee shops in Arkadia. Which at first was awesome as everyone thought that meant free coffee for them in the mornings, but then slowly realized that wasn't going to happen as he too had gotten bad about pestering everyone to try different coffee drinks he'd come up with. After Clarke had tried the fifth coffee experiment from him, she mentioned that Monty should ask Jasper to try them and the two could trade ideas back and forth over food and drinks. Luckily, they listened and had backed off…slightly.  
Finn, surprisingly, hadn't said much to anyone as he was still pissed about being manhandled by Clarke and Lexa. After word was spread about what had happened, he made himself scarce but Clarke's ear caught wind of another bit of information floating around that it had been Lexa toying with him when he claimed his soda tasted like sewage. That caused the blonde to laugh so hard, tears streaked down her face. When she told her friend, Raven said she owed Lexa a drink for it.  
"Griffindor!"  
"What?" Clarke looked over and glared at Raven as her friend's voice brought her out of her reverie.  
"Dude, I've been calling your name for the last five minutes." She said exasperated. "Where'd you go?"  
"Just thinking, sorry."  
"S'okay." Raven looked at her briefly and Clarke laughed as she saw her dark eyebrows wiggle up and down. "You were thinking of Lexa, weren't you?"  
"Nope." Clarke tried hiding her face as a blush started to creep over it. She hated how even mentioning the brunette's name caused her heart to do cartwheels in her chest.  
"You're a terrible liar." Raven laughed.  
"Just drive, Rae." Clarke said as she pulled out her phone and started to play a level on one of her games.  
…  
As it turned out, Mount Weather was a two-hour drive from Arkadia. Raven had called Anya to verify where they'd be meeting at before they lost cell service the closer they got to the mountain. Clarke kept switching from taking pictures with her phone to gazing out the window at the sights around her. While she had grown up in the city life, she very much loved to be outdoors especially because it meant more inspiration for her artwork.  
"You think they're already here?" Clarke asked as they took a dirt road through the wooded area that would lead to their camping spot for the next couple of days.  
"I don't doubt it." Raven said as she maneuvered the car around the windy road. She turned onto another smaller, one vehicle path that looked as if it would lead them right into the thick of the forest. "In fact," She said as they came around a small corner. "There they are."  
Blue eyes looked over to where she was pointing and couldn't help the smile that spread across her lips. "This is going to be so much fun."  
"Oh, yeah." Raven agreed as she pulled up behind a Jeep.  
There was her Honda, the Jeep, a Chevy truck, and the motorcycle Clarke immediately recognized as Lexa's, all parked in a semi circle on the outer edges of the clearing. Dead center was a ring of rocks that surrounded a fire pit that was dug out with fresh wood ready to light up. Beside the fire pit, about a foot away, was the growing pile of kindling and wood that was being added to.  
"I don't see Lexa." Clarke said as she noticed there were only Anya and Octavia in the clearing who were currently pitching a tent.  
"Of course you'd notice her missing." Raven rolled her eyes as she was smacked lightly.  
"Shut up. I was just making a comment." Clarke huffed as she opened her door and stretched her legs. She went to the trunk to start removing their things and started for the area next to where the others were working.  
"Heya, Griffin!" Anya called as she hammered a peg into the ground. "Bout time you two showed up."  
"Blame the slow one." Clarke said grinning as Raven dropped her things beside the blonde. "She's the one who was driving."  
"Would've gotten here faster if you hadn't told me to turn left when we needed to go right." Raven shoved her friend who shoved her back.  
"Awe! They're like an old married couple." Octavia smirked as both friends shot daggers at her. "Except without the married part."  
"And we're not a couple." Clarke added as she turned to go back to the Honda to get the rest of their things.  
"I would hope not!" Anya said as she smiled at Raven who hugged her.  
"Oh, gag." Octavia stuck a finger in her mouth feigning being sick.  
"O, shut up." Anya laughed as she pecked Raven on the lips.  
Clarke shook her head as she bent over, reaching into the back of the trunk to get a chair that had been pushed there.  
“Eyes off her ass, Woods!”  
Raven's voice startled her and caused her to hit her head on the top of the trunk. "Ugh!"  
Stepping away from the trunk while holding the top of her head, Clarke turned to see that Lexa and Lincoln had returned from gathering more firewood if their armloads didn't prove so already. When blue eyes met green, the blonde couldn't help but blush as once again she was found in an embarrassing situation. Although, this time she wasn't so sure why she was the one embarrassed when it was the brunette who'd been caught staring at her.  
"Hey." Clarke said sheepishly.  
"Hello, Clarke." A small smile and the blonde turned away least she do something else embarrassing, like go and kiss the woman she'd sworn she was going to keep her distance from.  
But looking from the corner of her eye as the two wood bearers made their way to the fire pit, she couldn't help but to allow them to wander over the exposed muscles of the brunette. She wore a tank top, her arms bare and covered in a fine sheet of sweat from hiking around the camping area. A blue flannel was tied around her waist, and dark blue jeans fit snugly over her long legs ending over a pair of boots. Her eyes trailed back up to the view of the brunette bending over to put her wood stack with the others.  
"Eyes off her ass, Griffindor." Raven whispered in Clarke's ear causing the blonde to jump again and slam the Honda's trunk shut a little too forcefully.  
Clarke turned and glared at her friend who doubled over in laughter and punched her hard in the arm when she realized everyone was now looking at them. "Go to hell, Rae."  
"Honestly," Raven stopped laughing and stepped closer lowering her voice, "What's stopping you from having a bit of fun?"  
"The fact that I don't want to get involved with anyone." Clarke said matter-of-factly. "And my mom would freak if she found out."  
"What happens on the mountain stays on the mountain." Raven winked at her as she slung an arm around her neck, "C'mon, let's go mingle."  
It didn't take long to get the camp set up with the extra hands available to pop up two more tents. Clarke and Raven set their things up in one tent while the others did the same in theirs. By the time everything was finished, the blonde was sitting in her chair with her sketchpad drawing.  
"So, you're some kind of artist?"  
Blue eyes looked up to see Octavia moving her chair beside her. "Some kind."  
"That's really good." The brunette pulled her legs up to her chest as she watched Clarke sketching, "How long have you been doing it for?"  
"A couple years." Clarke smiled as she thought back to when she first started, "I remember yelling at my dad when I was younger because he was coloring outside the lines in a coloring book. He loved to draw as well, so I thought it was ridiculous at the time, but then again I was also like five."  
"Your dad sounded awesome."  
"Not everyone thought that."  
Clarke looked up to see Lexa walking past with a scowl upon her face. Blonde eyebrows furrowed at that and she tilted her head slightly, "Are you really going to drag the past up again?"  
"Uh oh." Octavia looked between the two as Lexa had stopped and turned to face them. "Sore subject?"  
"Clarke's daddy banged Lexa's mom when they were younger." Anya supplied for her as she took a seat on a log she'd rolled up to the fire pit with Raven by her side.  
"Anya!" Lexa hissed.  
"What? It's true!" Anya shrugged as she settled down.  
"Sometimes the past should remain where it is." Lincoln said as he too joined the group from his tent.  
"Here, here!" Raven lifted her can of soda and took a sip.  
"Sometimes the past is the reason for how things end up in the future." Lexa snarled before turning and walking off into the woods.  
"Wow!" Octavia slapped her knees, "Somebody's raggin!"  
Clarke kept quiet as she looked after the direction the brunette had gone. The others started talking about mundane topics that she had no interest in. Setting her sketchpad down she muttered, "I'll be right back."  
Before she could get far, a hand wrapped around her wrist and she looked down to find Anya's face peering up at her, "I don't think it'd be wise to go after her just yet."  
"I can handle myself." Clarke said removing the offending hand.  
"Let her go babe." Raven nudged Anya's knees nodding at her friend, "Those two will hash it out like they always do."  
"Just don't drop a tree on my sister's head." Anya warned causing blue eyes to roll. "Yes, Raven told me about that."  
"Big mouth." Clarke muttered before she started to walk in the direction Lexa had gone.  
She'd followed until she worried she had lost the brunette. Losing sight of her around a bend, she hurried to catch up but when she got there, Lexa had disappeared. Looking around and contemplating on which direction to go, she had barely taken a step before that familiar voice stopped her.  
"Now look who's stalking who."  
Turning around quickly, Clarke didn't see her, but when her eyes trailed up she rolled them at the sight of the brunette sitting casually against a tree trunk, legs extended out over the thick branch she was balancing on.  
"You know, I'm having a hard time keeping up with your mood swings lately." Clarke crossed her arms over her chest and peered up at her. "You should seriously consider a warning label."  
She watched as the brunette looked as if she was about to say something but then shut her mouth before she uttered a word. Green eyes lifted to look away from the blonde as if she wasn't standing below her. When Clarke realized she wasn't going to address her, she rolled her eyes again and moved to the base of the tree to jump up onto the adjacent branch next to her.  
They sat there, neither saying a word, both intently listening to the others breathing. Neither knowing what they were waiting for, but also not wanting to be the first to jump into the root cause of the tension that was so thick around them.  
It was Clarke who broke first.  
"You want to tell me more about what happened?"  
"No." It was a simply reply. Short, but weighed down by so much more behind it.  
"I can't fix what my father did, but I can try to understand." Clarke turned her head slightly to look at Lexa, "There's more to the story than you told me, isn't there?"  
Lexa huffed shaking her head. She swung her legs over to one side of the branch she sat upon and jumped down. She didn't get very far before a hand wrapped around hers and pulled her to a stop.  
"You don't get to do that." Clarke looked into tortured green eyes. While the brunette tried so hard to hide the inner turmoil, blue eyes saw right past the façade. "Tell me."  
"Why?" Lexa shook her head again as she pulled away from the blonde. "What good is it going to do? It won't change anything!"  
"It'll help me understand what my mother isn't telling me." Clarke didn't know why, but she just had to know what really happened. She'd spoken very little to her mother about what had originally happened between the two families, and anytime she tried to dig deeper, she was brushed off or the subject was changed.  
"Figures." Lexa scoffed as she looked into blue eyes, "You really want to know?"  
"Yes." Clarke nodded, her eyes pleading with the troubled ones before her.  
"Your father didn't just sleep with my mother. They were having a full blown affair."  
Clarke held back the questions that bubbled within her to be let loose and asked. She'd figured for how strong of a reaction she'd been given by both Lexa and her mother that she was only getting part of the story. She nodded her head indicating for the brunette to continue.  
"The affair didn't end until your mother found out she was pregnant with you." Lexa crossed her arms and looked away from the blonde, "My parents fought constantly after that, my father turned to drinking and staying out late."  
Clarke opened her mouth to apologize, not knowing what else to say. She didn't know that the feud between their families went so deep. While an affair was definitely nothing to be taken lightly, the effects it had on the woman's family before her caused her to be angry with her own father. Instead of saying anything, she closed her mouth and just stood there.  
"My parents took me one night to go see a movie, they'd bickered a little but throughout the movie their attention was on me. My mother didn't know my father had snuck in his own form of entertainment and had been drinking throughout the movie." Lexa hung her head slightly and realization dawned on Clarke as to where this was going.  
Her heart clenched almost painfully in her chest when tear-filled eyes looked up at her. "She didn't realize until it was too late. He'd been the one driving and refused to pull over to allow her to finish the drive home."  
Clarke's hand came up to cover her mouth, her bottom lip was trembling. Tears had already started falling down her own cheeks at the anguish the woman before her felt as she relived the horrible past.  
"He bounced over the median and the oncoming truck had no time to stop before hitting us head on." Lexa finished, her shoulder shaking as her silent tears fell. "They didn't make it and neither did the other driver."  
"Lexa, I am so sorry." Clarke shook her head as her words came out broken. "I can't change what my father did but you don't have to hate me for it."  
"I don't hate you." Lexa wiped at her cheeks frustrated. "It's just aggravating that the first person I feel a connection to, is the daughter of the man who essentially killed my parents."  
"We could always try to be friends." Clarke said choosing not to bring any more attention to the rapid beating of her heart in her chest at the brunette's statement.  
"You want to be friends?" Lexa asked giving her a look of disbelief.  
"Well, yeah." She stepped closer and cautiously lifted her hand to brush the tears from her cheeks. "I know it hurts, and I know nothing I can ever say or do will bring them back, but you can't live in the past and blame me for something I didn't do."  
Lexa looked away and sighed, "I can't make any promises."  
"Baby steps." Clarke gave her trademark Griffin grin and was rewarded with the slight upturn of those perfect lips. "See! There you go, was that so hard?"  
"Shut up." Lexa shook her head and pushed the blonde slightly.  
"Nope, not happening." Clarke wrapped her arm around the tanned lengthy one and she started to guide them back to camp. "So, Anya and Lincoln?"  
"My adopted siblings." Lexa said as she stepped over a fallen branch.  
"And Octavia?"  
"Our neighbor."  
"Gotcha."  
They fell silent as they continued to make their way back to camp. Clarke was surprised but happy when they came into sight of it the woman next to her didn't release her arm. When Raven turned her head and saw them, the blonde noticed her nudge Anya and say something to her in her ear, she just knew it was an 'I told you so'.  
"Well, they didn't kill each other." Octavia said as they walked up, she moved her legs out of the way so that when Lexa did release Clarke's arm, the blonde could sit back down in her chair.  
"And I didn't hear any trees falling." Lincoln added as he poked the fire that they'd apparently had gotten lit while the two were gone.  
"I told you so." Raven said causing Anya to laugh.  
"Shut up." Two voices said at once.  
Clarke looked over at Lexa and shared a small smile.  
"The fire ready yet? I'm ready to eat!" Octavia sat up rubbing her belly causing everyone to laugh.  
Clarke just knew the next couple of days were going to be interesting, for certain.  
…  
"Get down!"  
Clarke felt her arm being tugged and her whole body was forced down behind a fallen tree trunk. She suppressed the giggle that was tempting to let loose as she could see by the light of the moon above them the stern look of concentration upon Lexa's face.  
"I didn't-"  
"Sshhh!" Lexa covered the blonde's mouth with her hand, suddenly really close to her.  
Shortly after the two had returned from hashing it out, they'd all sat around the fire making food and talking. Clarke learned a little more about the Dark side of her new witch world, but not very much as Raven kept interrupting any of the Dark witches whenever there was a point she didn't agree with.  
Her best friend was arguing with Anya when they were interrupted by the sudden down pour of rain. They all had scrambled for shelter, Clarke heading for her tent laughing hysterically. She expected Raven to follow behind her as they were sharing a tent, but her friend chose otherwise going to the green tent with Anya leaving Lexa to follow the blonde or be left in the downpour.  
Neither spoke while in the tent, both keeping to their own sides. They just sat and listened to their surroundings as water poured from the sky. It wasn't awkward, but Clarke would have much rather preferred to be talking more than just sitting there.   
The rain lasted awhile, long enough for it to start getting dark. When they'd all reappeared from their tents after the rain stopped, everything was wet and the dirt had turned to mud. Octavia suggested a game and before they knew it they were all paired off and running around the campsite throwing mud at each other.  
After a while, Clarke yelled after being hit with a magical mud ball that Anya sent her way and hollered so everyone could hear that magic was against the rules due to her inability to use hers yet. Octavia yelled her agreement as she too was under age and was getting tired of getting hit by magic mud.  
So, that's where Clarke found herself at the moment, crouched down behind the fallen tree as her partner, she'd been forced to be with (not like she was complaining or anything), kept her quiet after hearing someone nearby. She watched as Lexa removed her hand and narrowed her eyes as she reached down to form a messy ball of muck. Clarke was about to say something when it was sent sailing in front of them.  
Blue eyes tracked it as best she could, losing sight of it when it blended in with its surroundings but once she heard the loud SPLAT! She knew it had hit its target.  
"Son of a bitch!" Raven growled coming into sight. "Who threw that?"  
"Come on!" Lexa smirked as she pulled on Clarke's arm yet again as they ducked and moved about the wooded area out of range of any retaliation from the darker girl.  
"How'd you do that?" Clarke whispered giggling quietly when they'd come to a stop to catch their breath.  
"I have many skills." Lexa winked at her and looked around for their next target. She made a mud ball and put it in the blonde's hand. Pointing to a spot, she nodded, "Over there, on my word."  
Clarke nodded in understanding and waited as she turned to aim at the direction the brunette had indicated. She pulled back her arm, ready to launch.  
"Now!"  
Letting it loose, she watched, this time more successfully, as it went sailing and hit Octavia right in the face. She turned and high fived her partner before they were on the move again. This continued for a little while longer, every time they'd target someone, the hit was a success, and they would take off again. Only getting nailed a handful of times themselves which caused hysterical laughter when the game was called to a mutual ending and everyone appeared in the middle of the camp site.  
Octavia and Lincoln had gotten the worst of it all, both appearing like two bog monsters when they left the cover of the trees. Raven and Anya were pretty muddy as well. It was apparent that Lexa and Clarke were the winners as they were nearly unscathed, which caused two of the four to gang up on them and get them covered in mud.  
"Oh, geez! Come on guys!" Lexa whined as she was shoved down into a particularly muddy puddle. "This is so unfair! We won!"  
"There are no winners in the Game of Mud Wars!" Anya whooped victoriously as she smeared more mud on her sister.  
"You guys seriously suck." Clarke grumbled as she too had been given a face full of mud by her friend.  
"We do not, and you know you love me!" Raven grinned as she wiped at a spot on the blonde's cheek and kissed her dramatically.  
"Shove off!" Clarke laughed as she pushed her away, but as the blonde was notorious for her clumsiness, in doing so she herself lost her footing and ended up in the mud puddle Lexa was currently fighting Anya to get up from.  
Anya started laughing at her, giving Lexa the upper hand when she was distracted to throw her off and pick up a handful of nasty watery mud to lather across her face. Making it worse, the dirty blonde's mouth was open.  
"Ewww! Yuck!" Anya started spitting and glared at her sister. "That wasn't funny!"  
"Yes, it was!" Lexa laughed, only to find Raven taking a hold of her so Anya could retaliate.  
"Oh, hell no! Unfair!" Clarke jumped into the fray again and wrapped her arms around Anya's waist, preventing her from landing the handful of watery muck she was about to wipe Lexa's face with. Instead it went into her own face as the two fell backwards.  
Clarke yelped as at some point, Raven managed to get loose of Lexa's grip and smacked the blonde's ass with a muddy hand. Before she could turn, Anya had her back in a headlock to which she struggled to break free from. She couldn't however, contain the smile as she heard a very familiar growl from Lexa after Raven's actions and the two brunette's went at it again with Lexa jumping on Raven's back and pinning her down into the puddle when the taller of the two lost her footing.  
"Alright, you dirty bitches!" Octavia yelled as they four began to go at it again. "Let's go jump in the lake to clean off."  
"There's a lake?" Clarke asked still trying to fight the arm Anya had reloaded.  
"Yeah, Lincoln is already down there." Octavia said as if the blonde should have known that already.  
In reality, with all four of them mud wrestling, none of them had noticed that Octavia and Lincoln disappeared until the feisty brunette returned interrupting their game.  
"Alright, get off her." Lexa shoved her sister as she released Raven and stood up.  
"Make me." Anya laughed as Clarke tried and failed yet again to get loose.  
"Anya." Lexa warned, her tone dropping to sound almost dangerous.  
"Right, right." The blonde was reluctantly released, "Wouldn't want you to get all protective of your girlfriend."  
"She's not my girlfriend." Both Clarke and Lexa said at the same time.  
Clarke was thankful that her face was now covered in mud as it hid the blush, she was sure that covered it, very well. She accepted the offered hand that Lexa was extending to her and stood up. Sneaking a glance at the woman beside her she snorted, which caused green eyes to look at her in confusion.  
"I'm sorry, it's just-" Clarke covered her mouth as another snort came out followed by laughter. The brunette had mud surrounding her eyes and with the water from the puddle having cleared most of what was on her lower face, what remained looked like it was melting off, "You look like a raccoon!"  
"I do not!" Lexa huffed glaring at her as she pushed her slightly.  
"I'd have to agree with Blondie." Anya nodded as they started to follow Octavia.  
"Whatever." The brunette rolled her eyes and looked away from them.  
"Here." Clarke said bringing her hand up. Before Lexa could protest, a handful of mud was smeared across her mouth and chin, "There, now you don't look like a raccoon!"  
She took off running in the general direction they were headed with Lexa hot on her heels. Laughing so hard, she nearly tripped over a tree root she could barely see in the moonlight through her watery eyes. The sound of splashing up ahead alerted her to the fact of how close to the lake they really were. Looking up from the ground where she'd been watching where her footing was, blue eyes widened at the sight of the huge lake in front of her.  
It was beautiful, as the water reflected the moon light seemingly making the area appear brighter. She was so caught up in her surrounding that she momentarily forgot that Lexa was chasing after her, until their bodies collided and they both were sent into the water fully clothed. Clarke came up gasping at the suddenly cold water enveloping her, and glared as a brunette head popped up beside her smirking.  
“Ass.” Clarke grumbled shivering as she splashed water in Lexa’s direction.   
“You asked for it!” The brunette countered as she moved away.  
"What did you expect, Griffindor?" Raven laughed at her friend expense. "It's October, not July!"  
"Fuck you, Rae." Clarke hissed through clenched teeth. She made quick work of getting the mud off her as best as possible before she made her way for the shore. "You guys are crazy!"  
"Certifiably!" Octavia laughed as she splashed Anya as the others had also jumped in.  
Clarke rolled her eyes as that started a water war. She folded her arms across herself and made her way back to the camp, stumbling a few times over fallen branches. It took her longer to get back as walking by herself, she had no clue which way to go and she'd headed in the wrong direction before she caught herself and turned to go the right way.   
By the time she got back, she was surprised to see the fire was going again. She was even more surprised when she noticed the light bouncing off the back of Lexa who was just slipping a shirt on. Blue eyes looked away as she moved towards her tent, but not before green turned and found her looking.  
"Sorry." Clarke mumbled before opening her tent flap and grabbing her bag to change into warmer, drier clothes. She stepped inside and changed, reemerging with her wet clothes to hang on the line that had been set up earlier in the day.  
A blonde eyebrow rose when she noted that the area around the fire was already completely dried out. Only to remember that the brunette sitting on the log stoking the flames could do magic, she then rolled her eyes at her own ignorance and chose not to question it. Instead, she decided to take a seat beside her, leaning against the log for support as she looked into the fire.  
"Thank you." She said although unsure if she was heard or not as Lexa said nothing in response. They were back to the silence that seemed to be enveloping them lately whenever it was just them alone. Clarke was actually getting irritated at Lexa's bipolar ways and was about to call her on it when voices stopped her.  
The others returned, laughing and joking about whatever had happened down at the lake that they'd missed. Everyone changed into drier clothes, Octavia and Lincoln disappearing into their respective tents for the evening while Anya and Raven decided to join the two silent ones already sitting by the fire.  
"So, Clarke." Anya started, getting the blonde's attention. "What is the biggest question you have for us Dark ones?" She looked to Raven and glared at her, "No arguing this time."  
Raven sighed causing Clarke to chuckle and think of something she really wanted to know. "What's your guys' symbols?"  
Anya looked to her sister and then back to Clarke, "Mine is actually hard to describe without you being able to see it, sorry."  
Clarke looked over to the brunette beside her, waiting for her to answer. Green eyes glanced at her before she received her response.  
"A broken infinity symbol." Lexa's voice was quiet, only loud enough for Clarke to hear her.  
"Who is the Dark High Elder?" Clarke as ked and then looking to Raven she added, "Who's the Light High Elder again?"  
"An old geezer by the name Dante Wallace leads the Light." Raven said throwing a small stick into the fire. "His son, Cage, is a real prick and has already started spouting off that he's gonna take over once his father croaks."  
Clarke looked to Lexa, but when it was apparent the brunette wasn't going to answer her question she looked expectantly at Anya.  
The dirty blonde glared at her sister and sighed, "Our adoptive father, Gustus Woods."  
"What happens when the High Elders pass on?" Clarke asked looking between Raven and Anya as she gave up trying to get anything out of the silent woman beside her.  
"The Conclave." Raven said and the woman beside her nodded.  
"The Conclave?" Clarke's eyebrows rose and she waited for an explanation.  
"A fight in the arena between witches of their designated sides. Light can only fight for the Light and the same with the Dark." Anya said as she wrapped her arm around Raven's shoulders. "Once there is only one standing, they are deemed the High Elder."  
"Can anyone fight?"  
"Anyone of age who seeks the spot." Raven answered. "Not a lot do, as there is an almost guarantee of leaving in a body bag."  
"So people actually die during this Conclave?" Clarke looked at them in shock, "Isn't that illegal?"  
"Maybe in the normal human world." Anya said shaking her head sadly, "But in our world, we have different rules."  
"It's either kill or be killed." Lexa finally spoke up causing the blonde to jump slightly at her unexpected response, "Or bow out and surrender in the Conclave."  
"So there is a way you can leave with your life?" Clarke looked into green eyes that had finally looked at her.  
"Yes." Lexa replied, "But it is rare that anyone forfeits."  
"It's looked upon as a disgrace." Anya added. "Anyone willing to risk their life to join only to bow out is seen as a coward."  
"Selfish." Raven agreed. "That's why you make sure you're prepared to lose your life if you enter the arena."  
"I see." Clarke nodded in understanding, her mind whirling with the new information. A yawn escaped through her lips and she sighed, "I think Octavia and Lincoln had a good idea. I'm going to lie down."  
"Night." Anya called as the blonde stood.  
"I'll be in later." Raven said looking at her friend and smiling.  
"Night." Clarke said glancing back at the brunette who'd sat beside her and shook her head slightly as green eyes remained trained on the flames before her. She instead moved to her tent and entered, stretching out into her sleeping bag and shifting around a few times to get comfortable. Listening to the soft voices speaking outside her tent, she wasn't surprised when Raven started questioning Lexa.  
"Why are you acting weird again?" Her friend asked.  
"I don't know what you mean." Lexa responded quietly, almost to the point Clarke didn't hear her.  
"We all were having so much fun earlier and now all of a sudden you're shutting down." Raven said, "What gives?"  
"Nothing."  
"Bullshit."  
"Drop it, Raven."  
"You hurt my best friend, Woods, and I'll hurt you."  
"Babe, calm down." Clarke heard Anya's warning tone, interjecting to settle the bickering. "She's not going to hurt Clarke. Right, Lexa?"  
"Can't hurt someone I'm hardly around." Came the brunette's response.  
It was the last thing Clarke remembered hearing as she dozed off.  
…  
"You two better not be doing anything on my sleeping bag!"  
Blue eyes flew open.  
Her chest was rising and falling rapidly, wisps of mist floating from her parted lips as she tried to regain her breath. Her heart thundered rapidly against her rib cage almost to the point it hurt. It had been awhile since she had dreamt about her father. The memory of their trip to Disney World flashed before her eyes causing them to well with tears. The memory, having once been one of the happiest of her childhood was warped suddenly. Mixing the new information she'd learned about her father, with the old memory.  
While in the past she'd held her parent’s hands as they walked around the park, stopping to get a cotton candy, her blue eyes found that of a younger version of Lexa. The brunette sat on a bench swinging her legs while her two parents stood not too far off arguing in hushed tones. Having never met them before, their faces were obscured, but by the way the younger Lexa kept looking back at them told her who they were.  
The sad look upon the brunette's face caused Clarke's heart to constrict and tears to well in her eyes, the last few seconds of her memory/dream were of her tugging at her parent's arms and begging them to pay attention to her. Neither did as they continued to smile at each other and point out things they passed in the booths, promising their daughter to get her a stuffed Mickey Mouse plush toy before they left.  
Bringing herself to the present, she looked over at where she expected Raven to be, however she found the other half of the tent to be empty. Hearing the crackling of the fire, she sat up to see a low glow illuminating the entrance of the tent. Wrestling herself free of her sleeping bag, she decided she needed some fresh air. Unzipping the tent flap, she stepped out and stretched, her eyes catching those of Lexa's who was just sitting down against the log.  
"Hey." Clarke whispered moving closer to the brunette.  
"Hey." She was surprised to hear Lexa's response as before she'd been avoiding any conversation with her. "I'm sorry, did I wake you?"  
Clarke shrugged as she sat down next to the brunette. "It's ok, I needed to wake up." Blue eyes glanced over at Lexa's and Anya's tent when she heard a hushed gasp, "Seriously?"  
"They've been going at it for a while." Lexa whispered close to Clarke's ear, startling the blonde slightly. "I went for a walk when they started to make out shortly after you went to bed.  
Clarke shook her head as she felt the heat creeping up her neck. She didn't know if it was the quieted noises coming from the green tent nearby, or the close proximity of the woman sitting beside her. She cleared her throat and nodded towards her tent, "You know, if you wanted to sleep I can share."  
"It's ok." Lexa said before biting her lip, "About earlier-"  
"Don't." Clarke shook her head. "There's no need to apologize or explain. We said baby steps, remember? I expect a relapse every now and then."  
Lexa nodded and turned her head towards the fire. Clarke heard her clear her throat, "There's more to the Light and Dark witches than what you've been told."  
Clarke turned to look at the tanned face next to her and she tilted her head, trying desperately to ignore the noises coming from the green tent but when a moan wasn't stifled, green eyes found blue and they both rolled them at the same time before they started giggling.  
"I'm so giving Raven shit for this in the morning." Clarke shook her head looking up at the sky.  
"Raven?" Lexa's eyebrow rose, "I've had the unfortunate pleasure of hearing my sister and her going at it for the last couple of months and that moan was my sister's."  
"Bad wording, Woods." Clarke snickered as she nudged the brunette's shoulder.  
"Shut up, Griffin." Lexa shoved her back. "Anyways, as I was saying," She took a deep breath, "The whole concept they've probably painted for you is probably the stereotypical good versus evil scenario, am I right?"  
Clark thought a moment and then nodded.  
"I thought so." Lexa sighed and rested her chin on her knees she brought up to her chest, "It isn't like that. Neither Light nor Dark are strictly good or evil."  
"So, what's the difference?" Clarke asked leaning forward as well, mimicking Lexa's position. "What's really behind both?"  
"The Dark isn't so bad." Lexa thought a moment before looking at Clarke, "Have you ever heard of the yin yang theory?" At the blonde's nod of her head, she continued, "That's precisely what is going on between the Light and Dark. For every Light witch that does bad, there is a Dark witch that does good, and vice versa."  
"So what's the big deal about choosing sides?"  
"I've been snooping around Gustus' study." Lexa lowered her voice even more so. "I found a book on our history and it has a lot of interesting information in it."  
"Can I see it?" Clarke asked her eyes brightening with excitement.  
"Maybe." Lexa turned to look at the blonde, the corner of her lips rising. "You'll have to work for it though."  
"Oh, really?" A blonde eyebrow rose at the look she was being given and the thought crossed her mind that this woman was actually flirting with her.  
"For the love of god, you two are gross."  
"OH MY GOD!" Clarke screamed at the deep male voice that came from behind her. She jumped and scrambled over the top of Lexa to get away from the dark haired man only to have protective arms grab a hold of her, causing her to stay put in the brunette's lap.  
"Goddamn it, Bellamy!" Lexa growled in annoyance at the interruption.  
"What the hell is going on?" Anya's head poked out of the tent and a huge grin spread across her face at the sight of her sister and the blonde. "Hey, babe! You owe me that twenty!"  
"What? No way!" Raven's voice grumbled and rustling of a zipper could be heard before Raven's head appeared next to Anya's, "Griffindor! You ho!"  
"Fucking bitches! Some of us are trying to sleep around here!" Octavia's pissed off voice came followed by her tent zipper being forced open. "You all-BELL!"  
"O!"  
"When did you get here?" Octavia was out of her tent in a flash and wrapping her arms around her brother for a hug.  
"We just got in." Another voice popped up from the direction Bellamy had appeared. "Got off work early."  
"Murphy." Octavia grunted rolling her eyes.  
Clarke remained frozen where she was, unmoving, as her eyes peered from beneath Lexa's neck where she'd hid her face in embarrassment. The fact that she was still being held protectively told her that Lexa didn't seem to currently mind their position. She was going to move, but the warmth of the body against hers kept her still, that and she didn't want to bring any more attention to their current position than what it already had. Leave it to her friend to do just that however.  
"Can we just bring everyone's attention back to the fact that Clarke is wrapped around Lexa like a koala bear?" Raven laughed before there was a loud smack and she winced before looking at Anya, "Ouch, babe! What was that for?"  
"Leave them alone. You're just mad you lost your bet." Anya said before her head disappeared back into the tent, "Let's go back to bed."  
"Yes, dear." Raven mumbled before her head too disappeared back into the tent.  
"You're both assholes for leaving me with these prissy girls all day." Lincoln grumbled as he also stepped out of his tent. The others began to talk and the boys disappeared to go get the supplies to pitch another tent up, Octavia waved good night again and went inside her own, leaving Clarke and Lexa alone beside the fire.  
"Clarke?" Lexa's voice was soft so as not to startle the blonde.  
"Hmm?"  
"You can let go now." The brunette's voice carried the amusement Clarke knew she'd find in those green eyes if she moved her head from the crook of her neck.  
"Nope." Clarke nuzzled her nose against the tan skin in front of it and sighed, "I'm comfortable, I think I'll just stay put." She smiled at the chuckle she felt against her cheek and grumbled when she was nudged from her spot, "Ok, fine. I'll move."  
Lexa rolled her eyes as the blonde moved beside her and they both watched as the three boys returned and began to put up the other tent. It didn't take long before Lincoln returned to his for the night, nodding at the two before ducking in. Bellamy and Murphy went into their own tent and all was quiet once more, aside from the occasional shuffling of things in the newcomers' tent.  
Both girls stayed put, completely content with listening to their surroundings and watching the flames lick at the wood pieces in the pit. Clarke wrapped her arms around herself, thinking that she'd need to reevaluate her stance on not getting involved with the woman beside her. It was getting difficult to resist as the days passed by.  
…  
CLLIIIICK!  
Clarke's eyes fluttered open at the chiming of the phone that she found to be held in Raven's hand as her best friend took a picture of her. "Rae!" She groaned.  
"You two look so cute!" Raven grinned as she skipped over to the make shift table they'd set up with the truck's tailgate, "Aren't they, babe?"  
Clarke then became aware of the fact that she was on her side cuddled up to the warm body of Lexa who had her arms wrapped around her, holding her securely as the brunette laid flat, her head tilted slightly against the log. When she went to move, she felt the arms around her tighten.  
"Griffin, if you make me cold, I will hurt you." Lexa's sleep laden voice said, her eyes still shut tightly.  
"And yet just last night you were bitching about me being in your lap." Clarke rolled her eyes, poking the brunette's side closest to her, "Make up your mind, Woods."  
"I want that picture, Reyes!" Lexa growled, a green eye appearing and rolling in the direction of the truck.  
"Nope." Raven grinned as she stuck her tongue out at the two. "You two are just too adorable. You really just need to get over whatever it is between you two and hook up already."  
"Shut up, Rae."  
"Shut up, Raven."  
Clarke rolled her eyes as she and Lexa spoke at the same time and huffed as she put her head back down in the crook of the brunette's neck. If Lexa wasn't minding the closeness then she wasn't going to complain. Besides, it really was cold now that she was alert and she was thankful that they'd shared body heat to stay warm throughout the night.  
"You know, the next time you two decide to bang like rabid rabbits all night," Murphy's voice piped up as he emerged from his tent. "The least you two could have done was let me film it."  
"Fuck you, perv." Anya hissed glaring at the boy.  
"What?" He shrugged his shoulders and grinned, "I'd share the profits with you two!"  
"Pig." Clarke mumbled shaking her head slightly so as not to disturb the woman beside her.  
"That's John for you." Lexa murmured back to her. "He's one hundred percent a creeper. Not only does he play the part, but he looks the part too."  
"I'll say." Clarke noted that the boy did appear to have the looks that if she saw him walking along the sidewalk in town, she totally would have crossed the street to avoid him.  
"Ok, seriously, you two." Raven crouched down beside them and pushed her blonde friend. "Get up so there's more space around the fire."  
"Yeah." Octavia agreed returning from a wood run with her brother. "The last thing we need is you bitches rolling over and catching fire."  
"That would be hard to explain to my mom." Clarke laughed as she reluctantly sat up, grinning wider when the brunette huffed in protest. "What's the matter, Lexie?"  
"Ooooh! She nicknamed you!" Raven jumped up from her crouched position and did a little happy dance.  
"What the hell is wrong with you, Reyes?" Lexa looked at her in confusion, although she couldn't hide the small smile forming at the corners of her mouth as she sat up as well.  
"You've been nicknamed! It's like the Griffin brand of friendship." Raven gave the brunette a look as if she should have already known that. She nudged her friend again and wiggled her eyebrows, "Huh, Clarke?"  
"Go away, Rae." Clarke groaned as she rubbed her eyes. "It's too early to deal with you."  
“Not gonna happen.” Raven grinned toothily.  
“Seriously, Reyes, I’m about to knock you the hell out if you don’t shut up.” Lexa grumbled as she moved closer to the blonde and placed her head on her shoulder.  
“Somebody’s a grump this morning.” Raven muttered.  
“Raven!” Three voices yelled at once causing everyone to erupt into laughter.  
Everyone but the two who had been rudely awoken began mulling around the camp area doing various things. Wood was stacked, the fire was lit and food was taken out of the cooler along with a cooking pan. Clarke suppressed a yawn just as she was nudged again by her friend.  
"What?"  
"What do witches enjoy cooking the most?" Raven asked grinning.  
"Ugh! Rae!"  
"Nope." Raven snickered before delivering the punch line, "Gnomelettes!"  
"That was horrible." Octavia said shaking her head from her chair she sat in across the camp fire.  
"I thought-OW!" Raven rubbed the back of her head and glared at Anya who turned back to stirring the eggs she'd been making in the pan. "What was that for?"  
"Because you're an idiot." Anya said shaking her head as everyone laughed.  
"How can you put up with that?" Clarke asked looking at Anya, "She's driving me crazy with her horrible witch jokes."  
"Hey! You said they were funny!" Raven grumbled crossing her arms indignantly. "See if I tell you another joke again."  
"Hey, Reyes." Lexa's voice said catching everyone's attention, when dark eyes found green a small smile appeared on their faces, "Why did the witch go over the mountain?"  
"Oh, god, not you too!" Clarke groaned falling back against the log dramatically causing Lexa to grumble at suddenly being left to sit on her own.  
"I don't know, why?" Raven grinned waiting for the punch line.  
"Because there were no tunnels!" Lexa smirked as everyone chuckled at the unexpected joke coming from her. Even Clarke couldn't help but giggle.  
Blue eyes met green when the blonde sat up and they shared a smile before looking over to the others in their group who'd started reciting their own lame Witch jokes. Clarke looked over to the woman beside her as she said another joke, eliciting laughs from everyone and she couldn't help but to think that maybe, just maybe, she'd gotten through another layer of Lexa's shields.  
…

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Apologies if the formatting bugs anyone ive done all I can to figure out how to fix it but it just goes back to how this appears so...push through! ~RK


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